President Donald Trump is prioritising diplomacy with Iran over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's push to resume strikes immediately after the US midterm elections on 3 November, according to Axios as reported by the Anadolu Agency. In a call on Saturday, 31 October, Netanyahu reportedly urged Trump to attack once the vote was over, while Trump favoured letting the diplomatic tracks continue. Trump confirmed the call and described it as a very good talk, without giving details, and Netanyahu made no public comment, the Associated Press reported. Qatari and Iranian officials have been meeting for several days to find a deal that would end the war, and Iran said it had given a firm, rational response to Washington.
The case for diplomacy rests on what a deal could deliver quickly. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday that a proposal under discussion in Qatar could reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the United States meets several conditions, and he said Tehran hopes for rationality on the American side and wants Washington to choose diplomacy over other paths. Markets have already priced in the possibility. Saxo Bank reported that Brent crude fell about 3 percent on Monday after reports that Trump prefers giving diplomacy more time, after trading above 114 dollars on Friday. Supporters add that Trump pledged no further strikes before the vote, so a pause costs little, and that Qatar is a credible mediator.
The case against is that diplomacy has so far run alongside attacks, not in place of them. Qatar's LNG shipper Nakilat said its vessel Al Mayeda was struck by unidentified objects in the Persian Gulf on Friday night, with no injuries, and Qatar's foreign ministry condemned the attack. Iran's defence minister said Tehran is strengthening its armed forces so that they can respond without geographical limits, and Araghchi said there are no direct talks with Washington, only consultations through mediators. Some Israelis, the Associated Press reported, worry that Netanyahu might want to attack again to recover politically after his bloc lost its parliamentary majority in last week's election, which suggests the debate in Israel is also shaped by domestic politics. Critics of a pause say that Tehran could use the time to rebuild its forces.
The outcome matters for the whole Gulf and for the world economy. The Strait of Hormuz is one of the main routes for the world's oil and gas, and attacks on vessels near it keep energy prices high; Brent was still about 112.60 dollars on Monday morning, according to Fortune. Trump left the door open to military action after the vote, so the pause is conditional, and Gaza remains a source of instability, with more than 1,570 Palestinians killed since the October 2025 ceasefire, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
For now the diplomatic track has the upper hand, but it is fragile. If Tehran and Washington cannot turn the Qatar talks into a deal in the coming days, the argument for renewed strikes will return with more force, and the ships in the Gulf, the markets and the people of the region will again carry the cost.
