Trump says he ‘will be talking’ to Iranian leadership, but combat operations will continue ‘until all objectives achieved’

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday said Iranian leaders wants to speak with him after U.S. and Israeli attacks killed over 40 government and military leaders, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. 

“They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them. They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do sooner. They waited too long,” President Trump told The Atlantic in a phone interview Sunday, without detailing who contacted him.

However, Trump also declined specifying when those talks would take place, saying, “I can’t tell you.” 

A White House official later clarified that there are no immediate plans to hold discussions with the interim Iranian leadership. 

“President Trump said new potential leadership in Iran has indicated they want to talk and eventually he will talk. For now, Operation Epic Fury continues unabated,” the official said in a statement to reporters. 

On Sunday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian announced that a temporary leadership council consisting of himself, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, and the senior cleric, Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, started work in overseeing the transitional period.

In an interview with ABC News, Trump said U.S. and Israeli strikes had been so effective that “most of the candidates” to succeed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been killed, leaving no obvious frontrunner to lead Iran after the supreme leader’s death.

“It's not going to be anybody that we were thinking of because they are all dead. Second or third place is dead,” he added. 

Despite President Trump’s willingness to dialogue with Iran, the current leadership does not appear interested in talking to Trump. 

Iranian Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, posted a statement on social media on Monday morning, saying, “We will not negotiate with the United States.” 

Larijani also accused Trump of turning his “America First” campaign slogan into an “Israel First” policy: "Trump plunged the region into chaos with his 'delusional fantasies' and now fears more American troop casualties. With his delusional actions, he turned his self-made 'America First' slogan into 'Israel First' and sacrificed American soldiers for Israel's power-hungry ambitions," Larijani wrote on 𝕏. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the issue is not with the Iranian side. "Iran has always been open to diplomacy, and I think we have a very good record of that," he said on Sunday, according to Reuters. "Contrary to Americans, their record is bad and very negative."

"This is the second time that we negotiated with the Americans, and they decided to attack us right in the middle of negotiation," he continued.

Meanwhile, on Sunday night, President Trump promised to avenge the three American service members killed during the conflict with Iran. 

US CENTCOM also announced that five other soldiers had been wounded in action so far.

"As one nation, we grieve for the true American patriots who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation," Trump said in a video statement posted on Truth Social. 

President Donald J. Trump provides an update on Operation Epic Fury: pic.twitter.com/Vte8QKpISn

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 1, 2026

"Even as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives, we pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen,” he continued. 

"America will avenge their deaths and deliver the most punishing blow to the terrorists who have waged war," Trump stated. "Our resolve and likewise that of Israel has never been stronger.” 

In his speech, President Trump said the U.S. had sunk nine Iranian warships. This appears to be confirmed by open source intelligence, which showed damage at the Konarak Nava Basefollowing U.S. strikes.

🚨 BREAKING: Major destruction reported at Iran’s Konarak Naval Base after U.S./Israeli strike, with warships heavily damaged#Breaking #Iran #Konarak #US #Israel #NavalBase #Military pic.twitter.com/nCiJw8t3fK

— MiddleEastWatch (@MenaRadar) March 2, 2026

Trump also revealed in several interviews on Sunday that the U.S. is prepared for a long campaign in Iran, suggesting the operation could continue for another four weeks. 

“It's always been a four-week process,” he told The Daily Mail. 

“We figured it will be four weeks or so. It's always been about a four-week process so – as strong as it is, it's a big country, it'll take four weeks – or less,” the president explained. 

Despite the three casualties, Trump said the campaign is going according to plan, and shared U.S. estimates for the number of leaders killed in the first day of war. 

“You know, other than we took out their entire leadership – far, far more than what we thought. Looks like 48,” he said regarding the number of leaders killed. Trump said that combat operations would continue “until all of our objectives are achieved.”