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29 Oct 2026, 20:29

On Thursday, November 7, the Wall Street Journal reported that Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), presented military options for an attack on Iran to Donald Trump during an unprecedented meeting at the White House.

According to U.S. officials and individuals familiar with the details of the meeting, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Dan Kin, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were also present. This meeting took place one day after a gathering of senior military commanders with J.D. Vance, the Vice President of the United States.

Trump's administration had previously warned Gulf Arab countries to prepare for a short but intense military operation following the U.S. midterm elections. Trump also mentioned last week, referring to the extensive U.S. and Israeli attacks last spring, "We might execute a little more epic fury, or they will agree."

At the same time, the Pentagon has recently deployed additional air defense systems, munitions, and equipment to the Middle East and has moved some U.S. forces out of vulnerable bases. The U.S. military is also transferring another battery of the Patriot system to Israel to enhance the country's missile defense capabilities.
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Update:
A similar report from Axios, machine translation:
The senior commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East briefed Trump on Iran's naval blockade.

According to two U.S. officials, Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, provided a report on the status of the Iran war to Donald Trump, the President of the United States, focusing on the ongoing naval blockade of Iran.

Why it matters:
Trump, as he did before the "Midnight Hammer" operation in June 2025 and the "Epic Fury" operation in February, is now pursuing two parallel paths; on one hand, attempting to reach an agreement to resume peace negotiations, and on the other, preparing for a potential resumption of extensive military operations after the U.S. midterm elections.

Behind the scenes:
According to U.S. officials, Trump wanted to hear directly from the CENTCOM commander whether the naval blockade had been effective.
▪️ Cooper also updated Trump on military operations to guide tankers out of the Strait of Hormuz and towards global energy markets.
▪️ He also provided the latest information on the economic pressure campaign that the U.S. military is conducting in collaboration with the Treasury Department.
▪️ According to these officials, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Treasury Secretary Scott Basset, General Dan Kin, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Steve Witkoff, White House envoy, and several other senior officials were also present at the meeting.
▪️ The White House and CENTCOM declined to comment.
▪️ The Wall Street Journal was the first media outlet to report on this meeting.

Key developments:
A group of regional mediators led by Qatar is trying to convince the U.S. and Iran to pursue a path of negotiation instead of resuming war after the midterm elections.
▪️ A regional source said, "Mediation is at a very sensitive stage."
▪️ Qatari mediators recently delivered a letter from J.D. Vance, the Vice President of the United States, to General Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.
▪️ In this letter, Vance proposed resuming negotiations but emphasized that any negotiations must address Iran's nuclear program.
▪️ According to an informed source, Trump and Vance met on Wednesday to discuss a possible action to demonstrate goodwill to Iran, such as sending humanitarian goods including food and medicine. Trump later publicly supported this idea.

Officials' statements:
Tom Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, told CNN on Thursday that the U.S. and Iran are "very close" to reaching an agreement to reduce tensions.
▪️ He said, "I think we are very close to reaching a point where we can say: Let's take a pause for now."
He added, "We are not going to reach a comprehensive solution immediately, but we can allow the region to proceed at its own pace and rhythm."

Counterparty's position:
Iranian officials on Thursday continued to demand that the U.S. take a series of actions before resuming negotiations on Iran's nuclear program; including lifting the naval blockade, releasing blocked Iranian assets, and allowing Iran to sell oil.
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