Iran to Trump amid nuclear deal ultimatum: 'We won't start war,' but ‘respond with force’

Iran warned against any military aggression while reiterating that it ‘won’t start a war' in its official response to a recent letter by US President Donald Trump, said a senior Iranian military official.

In March 2025, Trump sent a letter to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, giving Iran two months to secure a new nuclear agreement or face potential military action.

In response, Khamenei stated that Iran "won’t start a war but will respond to any threat with full force," according to Major-General Mohammad Bagheri, Iran’s armed forces chief of staff, as reported by the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.

‘We seek peace’ says Iran

Mohammad Bagheri further added that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had already established that ‘Iran will seek peace’ in the region, and does not "pursue nuclear weapons in nuclear program, but rather the needs of our(their) own people,” reported Bloomberg.

Trump was also told in Khamenei’s message that Iran won’t hold direct talks with his administration, “but indirect talks are acceptable,” Bagheri said. The text of the letter hasn’t been officially published.

Direct talks with Washington ‘meaningless’

Donald Trump said last week he believed the Islamic Republic was open to direct negotiations over its nuclear program, despite Iranians previously rejecting that assumption.

On Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reaffirmed Tehran’s position, saying that direct talks with Washington would be “meaningless,” but that Iran remains “willing to explore the path of indirect negotiations.”

In 2018, Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a global agreement that curbed Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. Since returning to office, he has reintroduced his so-called “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran, escalating sanctions and warning of possible military action if efforts for a new deal collapse.

(with inputs from agencies)