President Donald Trump said on May 18 that the U.S. has postponed a military strike against Iran planned for May 19 after direct appeals from the leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
"I have been asked by the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to hold off on our planned military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was scheduled for tomorrow," Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social.
Trump said that, out of “respect” for the Gulf leaders, he had instructed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Daniel Caine, and U.S. military commanders to stand down from the planned operation for now.
However, he added that he had instructed the top defense and military officials to "be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable deal is not reached."
