United States President Donald Trump has signaled a sharp shift in his administration’s diplomatic posture toward Tehran, announcing on social media that Washington does not need an agreement with Iran and instructing Vice President JD Vance to pivot away from leading negotiations.

In a morning statement posted to Truth Social, Trump directed Vance, who had been spearheading diplomatic outreach to secure a ceasefire and broader resolution, to instead devote his complete attention to addressing alleged crime and corruption in Democratic-governed states and cities.

“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed! We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!” Trump wrote, referring to frozen Iranian assets and U.S. naval control over the Strait of Hormuz.

The directive follows quiet diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran aimed at averting a renewed escalation into full-scale conflict.

The reassignment also distances Vance from stalled negotiations after the vice president publicly attributed recent Republican midterm election losses to voter dissatisfaction over the war with Iran, a conflict Trump agreed carried political costs, though he maintained the military intervention was justified to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

Later in the day, during an interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, Trump offered a more hawkish assessment of the standoff. While reiterating earlier remarks that immediate military action was unnecessary because U.S. forces maintain control over the Persian Gulf waterway, he stated he would not hesitate to resume strikes if conditions deteriorated.

“We control the Gulf in terms of the Hormuz Strait. We control it, totally control it. But the answer is, if I saw things going the other way, I would do that. And it’s possible I would do it right now,” Trump said, adding that he would view leaving office with Iran’s current leadership remaining in power as a defeat.

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Iranian forces targeted a United States military installation in Bahrain early Friday in what Tehran described as retaliation for an American strike on Iranian territory, marking Iran’s first direct attempt to hit a U.S. military facility in a Gulf state in over two months.

United States Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed that American air defenses intercepted and destroyed two Iranian one-way attack drones launched toward Bahrain, reporting no casualties or structural damage.

The statement directly refuted claims by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which asserted via state-affiliated media that its aerospace forces had successfully struck and destroyed an American early-warning radar system on the island, home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, in response to an alleged aerial attack on a telecommunications tower in the southern Iranian port town of Sirik.

The strike signals a sharp escalation following a two-month pause in Iranian attacks on Gulf bases since early September, during which Tehran had largely concentrated on disrupting commercial maritime transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

Maritime intelligence data indicates that vessel attacks in the strategic waterway reached a conflict high of 37 incidents in October, with at least 14 additional attacks recorded so far in November.

Despite ongoing disruptions, the International Energy Agency noted that global oil supplies are showing tentative signs of rebalancing as Middle Eastern crude exports recover faster than global demand.

The renewed military friction coincides with collapsing diplomatic prospects between Washington and Tehran. Just one day prior to the drone launch, U.S. President Donald Trump declared on social media that Washington no longer required a negotiated settlement with Iran and instructed Vice President JD Vance, who had been leading diplomatic outreach, to shift his focus entirely toward domestic issues.

“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed! We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!” Trump posted on Truth Social, referencing frozen Iranian assets and U.S. naval control over the Persian Gulf chokepoint.

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Sweden has returned 39 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria, 129 years after British forces looted thousands of cultural artefacts from the Benin Kingdom during the 1897 invasion.

The artefacts were formally handed over to Nigeria at a ceremony in Lagos on Thursday, November 12, by representatives of Sweden’s National Museums of World Culture. They will be received by the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM).

According to The Art Newspaper, the objects were among thousands taken by British troops who attacked and burned the Benin Kingdom before incorporating it into the British Empire.

The returned collection includes cultural objects known as Emwin Arre. However, six of the 39 artefacts will remain in Sweden under a 10-year loan arrangement.

Michael Barrett, curator for Africa at Sweden’s National Museums of World Culture, described the return as an important step towards addressing the colonial-era looting of cultural property.

The restitution adds to ongoing efforts to recover Benin artefacts held by foreign institutions. The Netherlands returned 119 objects to Nigeria in 2025, while Germany handed over 20 Benin Bronzes in 2022.

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