Washington: US President Donald Trump issued a veiled threat, calling the lack of military action in the Middle East "calm before the storm," amid reports of discussions with his top aides on resuming air strikes on Iran.

In an AI-generated image shared on social media, Trump is seen wearing a Make America Great Again hat alongside a US Navy Admiral aboard a naval vessel, with Iranian ships in the background. The post comes as the New York Times reported that Trump is about to take a critical decision on Iran, with top aides making plans to resume air strikes if he chooses to break the diplomatic deadlock through military force.

The fragile April 8 ceasefire remains in place, but tensions over the Strait of Hormuz show no signs of abatement. Trump has warned of a "very bad time" for Iran if a peace deal is not reached soon. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday his government received messages from the Trump administration indicating a willingness for new talks, but cautioned that "distrust" over Washington's true intentions remains.

Negotiations mediated by Pakistan last month reached a stalemate over Iran's nuclear ambitions and control of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that other than accepting Tehran's 14-point peace proposal, any other approach will be "completely inconclusive." Iran also announced a "professional mechanism" to manage traffic in the strait along a designated route, which will remain closed to the operators of 'Project Freedom.'

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