Good to hear, actually. Based on the compliance history of the Iranian regime, Donald Trump should keep the B-2s and the Tomahawks at the ready.
While at the G-7 summit, reporters asked Trump about the new agreement between the US and Iran. Trump made a good point about the nature of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which is that it's not actually a deal. It's barely a ceasefire at the moment, although the reported elements of sanctions relief and asset releases certainly raise eyebrows. Its function is to create a structure for later talks while ending the Hormuz crisis by having both sides pull back and allow for fully normal commerce.
Trump told reporters that Iran has to comply with the conditions in the MOU to get to a negotiated settlement, and if they don't, watch out:
WATCH: Trump: “If I don’t like the MOU, I will go right back to dropping bombs in the middle of their head” pic.twitter.com/XVs6AXO75p
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) June 17, 2026
Mediaite has the complete response:
“No, it’s not final,” Trump said. “It’s a memorandum of understanding. And if I don’t like it, we’ll go back to shooting at them, dropping bombs on their head.”
He added: “If I don’t like it, if they don’t behave, we’ll go right back to dropping bombs right smack in the middle of their head. OK? Because they’ve misbehaved for 47 years.”
Trump followed up by blasting the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) negotiated under Obama and agreed to by Iranian officials, the U.S., and five other world powers in 2015.
Trump nixed the agreement, which imposed restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program while offering a lift on sanctions in return, in 2018.
“Nobody could have made this deal,” Trump said. “I mean, the JCPOA done by Obama, he handed him a billion-seven in cash, gave him hundreds of millions of dollars, gave ’em billions and billions of dollars. But he gave them $1.7 billion in cash, green cash from banks into a Boeing 757 and flew it into Iran. And they stood at the plane. I have pictures of it like, ‘Oh my God, look at this money’s giving us.’ He tried to bribe his way out. I didn’t do that. Nobody mentions that $1.7 billion and hundreds of millions of dollars. They tried to bribe their way out of it. And you know what? The Iranians did? ... They laughed at Obama and they said, he’s a stupid son of a b*tch.”
Fair enough. Even if the Bloomberg draft is accurate, Trump technically retains a full set of options for non-compliance. (Note too that Trump did not dispute the accuracy of news reports about the contents of the MOU.) His refusal to apply consequences for non-compliance at the start of the ceasefire, and the ire he directed at Benjamin Netanyahu for refusing to stand down in Lebanon, left the impression that he would not disrupt talks that Trump expected to provide exit ramps from the conflict. However, Trump began escalating military strikes this month in response to Iranian non-compliance, with a full-scale, two-day return to full targeting that forced the Iranians back to the table.
That ain't nothing. It may not deter the IRGC from continuing the Tehran Two-Step, but Trump has set that precedent as a deterrent. If he sticks to it while the IRGC continues to insist on collecting "tolls" in international waters, then the process won't get past the fourth point in the MOU. That's well before the release of the frozen assets and the end of the naval blockade, or at least close enough to re-establish the latter and put everything back to Square One.
It may not get past the first point anyway, as I mentioned earlier. The MOU extends to Lebanon without Israel's approval, and Israel does not appear to approve. David will have more on this later, but the IDF is still targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon while Iran's terror proxy continues to target Israel:
Five IDF soldiers were injured, including one seriously, by explosive drones launched by Hezbollah at troops in southern Lebanon this morning, the army announces.
At around 6 a.m., a first-person view (FPV) drone piloted by Hezbollah exploded next to a tank in the southern Lebanon village of Kfar Tebnit, close to Nabatieh.
As a result of shrapnel from the blast, four soldiers were injured.
Several minutes later, a second FPV drone exploded on a vehicle being used to evacuate the wounded troops, injuring a fifth soldier.
Reporters asked Trump about this as well, and Trump did make clear that Israel has the right to defend itself. He also said that the MOU does not require Israel to halt its operations against Hezbollah:
Asked at a bilateral meeting with India’s prime minister whether he wants Israel to halt its military campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, US President Donald Trump responds, “No, I want Israel to be able to protect themself, but I do want them to use good judgment.”
The IRGC will eventually use this as an excuse to refuse to comply with the MOU. When they do, Trump will have even more room to apply disincentives like dropping bombs on their heads. If Trump sticks to those red lines, then the MOU may not matter much at all.
Editor's Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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