Donald Trump says US ‘pausing’ Iran power plant destruction plans by 10 days after Iranian Government request

US President Donald Trump has shocked the world, announcing a “pause” to his plans to bring destruction to Iran, confirming the move in a statement requested by the Iranian Government.

Mr Trump had given Iran an ultimatum over the weekend: Fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz or watch the US “obliterate” Iran’s power plant infrastructure.

The initial deadline was just 48 hours, set to expire on Tuesday morning Australian time. That was pushed back by five days as the US President claimed peace talks were underway. Iran initially denied that any negotiations were underway.

Now, Mr Trump has sensationally moved the goal post again, claiming negotiations are progressing, granting Iran 10 more days, making an announcement at the Iranian Government’s request.

“As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well.”

Mr Trump’s latest deadline is due to expire at 11am (AEST) Tuesday, 7th April, 9am (AWST).

The US reportedly sent Iran a 15-point peace plan, something Iran has rejected.

The US proposal for ending nearly four weeks of fighting is “one-sided and unfair,” a senior Iranian official has told Reuters, while Mr Trump says Iran must make a deal or face a continued onslaught.

The Iranian official said the proposal, conveyed via Pakistan, “was reviewed in detail on Wednesday night by senior Iranian officials and the representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader”.

It lacked the minimum requirements for success and served only US and Israeli interests, the official said, while stressing that diplomacy had not ended despite the lack, for now, of a realistic plan for peace talks.

Mr Trump described the Iranians as “great negotiators” but added that he was not sure he was “willing to make a deal with them to end the war”.

Iran has launched strikes against Israel, US bases and Gulf states, as well as effectively blocking Middle East fuel exports via the Strait of Hormuz since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28.

“They now have the chance, that is Iran, to permanently abandon their nuclear ambitions and to join a new path forward,” Mr Trump said during a cabinet meeting at the White House.

“We’ll see if they want to do it. If they don’t, we’re their worst nightmare. In the meantime, we’ll just keep blowing them away.”

Oil jumped to $US105 a barrel on Thursday, and stock markets fell on renewed pessimism over ceasefire prospects as global plastics, technology, retail and tourism struggled with the effects.

- with Reuters