US President Donald Trump has warned that “there won’t be anything left” of Iran if stalled peace negotiations fail to produce a breakthrough, as fresh drone attacks on Gulf states further strain a fragile truce in the Middle East.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump intensified pressure on Tehran amid ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran.
“For Iran, the clock is ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them,” Trump wrote. “TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!”
Washington and Tehran have remained locked in conflict since US and Israeli strikes launched earlier this year triggered a wider regional confrontation that has disrupted global energy markets and heightened fears of escalation across the Gulf.
Despite indirect negotiations mediated by Pakistan, both sides have failed to secure a lasting agreement. A temporary truce reached on April 8 has repeatedly come under pressure from sporadic attacks.
Saudi Arabia said it intercepted three drones entering its airspace from Iraq on Sunday, while the United Arab Emirates reported that a drone strike caused a fire at the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant. Authorities said there were no injuries and radiation levels remained unaffected.
UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash condemned the attack, appearing to blame Iran or allied armed groups operating across the region.
“The terrorist targeting of the Barakah clean nuclear power plant, whether carried out by the principal perpetrator or through one of its agents, represents a dangerous escalation,” Gargash wrote on X.
Iran-backed militias operating in Iraq and Yemen’s Hezbollah allies, the Houthi rebels, are known to possess combat drones capable of cross-border attacks.
The conflict has also disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global oil route through which roughly 20 percent of the world’s oil exports pass. Iran has restricted maritime movement through the waterway, while the United States has tightened pressure on Iranian ports and exports.
Meanwhile, fighting linked to Iran’s regional allies continues to fuel instability in Lebanon and Israel.
Israeli military officials said Hezbollah fired around 200 projectiles into Israel over the weekend, while Lebanon’s health ministry reported that Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon killed five people, including two children.
Lebanese authorities say Israeli attacks since the start of the conflict have killed more than 2,900 people, including about 400 deaths recorded after the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon began two months ago.
Iranian media accused Washington of refusing to offer meaningful concessions during the latest round of negotiations.
According to the Fars news agency, the United States demanded that Iran retain only one operational nuclear facility and transfer its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to American control.
Iranian officials also complained that Washington had refused to release frozen Iranian assets abroad or discuss compensation for wartime damage.
The Mehr news agency said the US was attempting to secure “concessions that it failed to obtain during the war,” warning that negotiations risked reaching a deadlock.
Pakistan has continued diplomatic efforts to ease tensions. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met senior Iranian officials in Tehran, including parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.
Following the talks, Ghalibaf said the war had destabilised the entire Middle East and questioned the security role of the United States in the region.
“Some governments in the region believed that the presence of the United States would bring them security, but recent events showed that this presence is not only incapable of providing security, but also creates the grounds for insecurity,” he said.
