ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - US President Donald Trump on Thursday said he “soon” will make a decision on the resumption of strikes against Iran, noting after a meeting with national security advisors that his forces remain "locked and loaded" for any future hostilities.

"I would rather not destroy the rest of the country, if possible, but maybe I’ll have to. And you’ll know soon enough," the president told reporters in the Oval Office.

With his Republican Party having suffered a staggering defeat in the US midterm elections on Tuesday, Trump is facing public pressure to bring an end to the conflict, with cost of living increases as a result of the military intervention having proved a decisive issue for voters.

The US president himself conceded on Tuesday that the war was "a part of" the electoral whitewash, saying, "People agree with what I'm doing on Iran, but they really probably weren't willing to deal with the short-term consequence of paying more for gasoline."

Earlier in the day, Trump met with his top intelligence and national security advisors in the White House to discuss future options regarding Iran.

When asked on Thursday about the negotiation tracks open with Tehran and reports that Iranian officials were engaging with a current proposal that would entail restrictions on the country's nuclear program, Trump said that "they're not doing anything without our approval."

Reuters reported Thursday that Iran had submitted a proposal regarding its nuclear program to Washington via Qatari mediators and that it is currently under review in the US. Iran is insisting that its conditions for an agreement, which include the lifting of sanctions and unfreezing Iranian assets, be met before it reopens the Strait of Hormuz.

"It doesn't make a difference what they're looking at. They're not going to have a nuclear weapon," Trump vowed.

Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Mohsen Rezai on Saturday confirmed that he received a direct letter from US Vice President JD Vance written with a view to break the deadlock and catalyze an agreement, with the Iranian official claiming that "their tone has completely changed," calling it "a good sign" for Tehran's negotiating position.