Trump issues CHILLING warning on aborted Iran attack

We go straight to Chief Foreign Correspondent Trey Yinks, who is live in Tel Aviv with the latest on Iran. Trey. Yeah. Hey, guys. Good morning. President Trump calling off planned strikes against Iran this weekend, as he says a deal is close. According to the president, talks will resume today aimed at finalizing an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz. Trump says he was asked by Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia to hold off, and diplomatic efforts are playing out. We had an attack that would be the biggest attack since World War II, and it would have been disastrous, and they didn't want us to do it. And frankly, Saudi Arabia didn't want it either. They thought that a deal is imminent. Overnight, Iran's president, Massoud Pazeshkian, posted to X about the Memorandum of Understanding that was reached earlier this year, saying, in part, I believe this memorandum will be the center of gravity for our foreign relations in the future. We must strive to compel the enemy to remain committed to what it has signed. The security of the country, the region, and our allies will be enhanced by this memorandum. Now, international focus does remain on the Strait of Hormuz, where an explosion was heard this morning by a tanker, according to maritime tracking groups. Reports indicate that a new deal could see the Strait open for 60 days without fees. With the possibility of another agreement in sight, the region remains on alert. Here in Israel, officials believe the situation could change at any moment, and the army remains on high alert. Guys? Trey, we're just getting word Iran is pouring cold water on these talks. The president says it could happen. Iran's saying no. Where do we stand at this point? It's not surprising. According to our reporting, often when talks take place behind the scenes, the Iranians will come out and publicly say that no conversations are taking place. In these moments, they are playing to a domestic audience, trying to ensure the people of Iran that they are not cutting a deal with the United States behind their backs. The reality is many of these mediators and negotiators for the Iranians, from Abbas Argachi, the country's foreign minister, to Mohammad Kalibaf, the country's parliament speaker, are on a daily basis conveying messages to the Trump administration. And so we have to wait and see if those talks do begin today, and what regional players, including Pakistan and Qatar, say about these intermediary conversations. Guys? And you also have the IRGC. They apparently don't want any peace, and you have the civilian factions, like you said, who do want peace. You have the rest of the Middle East that doesn't want refugees streaming into their country. We're going to get into all of that with Steve Yates coming up next block in about 10 minutes. We appreciate that. Trey, thank you. President Trump calling off strikes on Iran as the U.S. attempts once again to reach a deal with the Islamic Republic. Here's what the president had to say when asked if there's a deadline for an agreement. Oversee. Would I rather make a deal? I'm not looking to kill people. There's people dying by it. Former Deputy National Security Advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney, Steve Yates, joins me now. Steve, I have heard this referred to as Lucy moving the football continuously on the American people. And I think that's somewhat accurate. So the question to you, what is different this time? Why should we buy that now? Of all times, Iran is ready to make a deal. Well, I completely understand the frustration. I also feel like the Lucy in the football situation is a cycle that needs to break. Basically, I would pull back and just say there's administration has tried to do a few very difficult things. And the first was the joint operations with Israel. The beginning of this military campaign, those were overwhelmingly successful and bought space and time on the nuclear and other fronts in order to try to work on a second phase that changes some of the regional dynamics, especially with some of our broader Arab allies in the region. And that has moved things, I think, very much to the detriment of the Iranian regime and to the benefit of a broader path to peace and prosperity. This last part is also very, very hard. And that's where I think they have to close out the Revolutionary Guard's influence inside Iran. Otherwise, whomever they're negotiating with cannot deliver, and the Iranian people don't feel safe enough to rise and influence their future in the way that's absolutely necessary. And so I think we're two thirds of the way there. There's also the 80-20 rule of where that last part is hardest. That's where we are from my point of view. Maximum pressure on the economic front and the military front is necessary to get there. Hopefully, that's where the administration is going. I think a few things can be true. Obviously, like you said, the IRGC has no interest in peace. They want the destruction of America, and they are acting like it. It's those civilian factions that we have to negotiate with. But it still seems to me, the closer we get to these midterms with the political pressure mounting on the president, it still seems to me Iran is drawing this out, trying to So they get the best deal possible, let's say, in October, when maximum leverage, if they have any against the president with regard to the midterms, will be at its highest. Your thoughts? I think it's a very real risk. I'm sure that the president's team has been talking through these various scenarios, probably was part of the core conversation at Camp David. And that's why I think it's very, very important not to allow the intermediaries to sort of pull us in the direction that they want to go. I think it's important for the United States and our stalwart allies to be in lockstep. That's more Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and a few others. And make sure that we stand by those who have real capability, real skin in the game, were really attacked during the course of this, and are going to be basically the capable parties to shape where the region goes. And if they have options to act independently to further degrade the IRGC, that is a welcome part of this mix. It should not be America alone. I don't think the administration is looking for it to be America alone. But I think that some decisive moves have to be taken in coming weeks in order to show people we're on a path to something that's understandable and at acceptable cost and risk. I think that's doable. We have to be seen doing this good, not just talking about it. You mentioned other countries in the region. This recent push for diplomacy is definitely being pushed by the Saudis. Here's more from the president on that. Listen. They asked us, Iran specifically, but the other three said we really, I asked them, I asked Saudi Arabia, the king, I said, the crown prince, I said, what would you rather do? Would you rather have us do this or not? They said we would much prefer a deal as opposed to an attack, because you don't know where these attacks lead. I mean, will they be flooded with people pouring into their country and disaster? A lot of, a lot of bad things can happen. Steve, we haven't really talked a lot about the potential refugee crisis. If Iran breaks down and there's really no ability to live there for the majority of the people, how much of a factor should that be in our calculations as to what comes next? Well, our regional allies have some pretty strong capabilities and they don't have any dancing with open border concepts the way farther away allies do. But for me, this argument goes all the more to the point of all of us together need to be doing something to degrade those who would oppress the Iranian people and degrade their ability to do so. And if we do that, there's a lot less reason for the Iranian people to flee in any meaningful numbers. So I think that we have options in that regard, and that's where the focus needs to be. It's an element of political warfare, but it's also empowering those in the region who really have a stake in not having the flood come to their territory, step in and take action in this area. So that's the third part of the very hard thing the president and the coalition are trying to do. It's urgent, I think, at this point. Very hard, to say the least. Steve Yates, thanks for your insight. Appreciate it, as always.