JD Vance Says Nuclear-Armed Iran Could Trigger Regional Arms Race In Gulf
JD Vance warned Iran could trigger dangerous Gulf nuclear arms race.
US Vice President JD Vance warned that Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon could trigger a global “nuclear arms race” and said Washington remained prepared to restart military operations if diplomacy with Tehran failed. His remarks came during a White House press briefing on Tuesday amid continuing tensions between the United States and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear programme.
Vance said the administration of President Donald Trump was still pursuing negotiations in good faith after Trump recently delayed a planned military strike on Iran following appeals from Gulf nations including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. According to Vance, the White House believes Iran is interested in reaching an agreement, but he stressed that diplomacy would not come at the expense of US national security objectives.
“Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Vance said, describing the issue as a core principle of the Trump administration’s foreign policy approach. He argued that if Tehran successfully developed atomic weapons capability, countries across the Gulf region and beyond would likely seek nuclear arsenals of their own, creating broader global instability and significantly increasing the risk of conflict.
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The vice president said the United States remained militarily prepared if negotiations collapsed. Referring to a meeting with Trump before the briefing, Vance stated that the US was “locked and loaded” and capable of restarting military operations if necessary. However, he added that renewed conflict was not the administration’s preferred outcome and expressed hope that Tehran would continue engaging diplomatically.
Vance also framed the issue in personal terms, saying he did not want future generations to inherit a world in which dozens of additional countries possessed nuclear weapons. He warned that some governments seeking such capabilities could be hostile or linked to extremist groups, increasing the danger of nuclear proliferation beyond the Middle East.
Despite the hardline warning, Vance suggested there remained an opportunity to reset relations between Washington and Tehran if both sides committed to negotiations. He said the United States was offering Iran two paths — a diplomatic settlement or the risk of renewed military action — while maintaining that the administration’s primary goal remained preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
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