The United States and countries participating in the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) pledged on Friday to step up efforts to prevent the transfer of weapons, materials, equipment, and technologies to and from Iran that could support the development of weapons of mass destruction and delivery systems, including unmanned aerial vehicles.
The countries issued a joint statement marking one year since the reinstatement of six UN Security Council resolutions imposing restrictions on Iran under the snapback mechanism.
Among the measures announced were closer intelligence-sharing between participating countries, streamlined procedures for transferring information, and interdiction and prevention measures targeting Iranian proliferation activity.
The statement also expressed support for the US sanctions campaign Operation Economic Outcast and called on all UN member states to implement the reinstated resolutions.
“We call on Iran to return to fulfilling its nonproliferation commitments and to cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency,” the statement said.
Trump: ‘Very soon, you’re going to see things happening’
The declaration of increased cooperation followed remarks by US President Donald Trump this past week that “things will happen in Iran very soon,” as he said Tehran’s military and economic capabilities had been severely damaged during six months of war.
“Very soon, you’re going to see things happening,” Trump said, later declaring that the United States would “win this war very quickly, one way or another.”
“In Iran, we’ve been there for six months, with 18 dead. By the way, even one is too many, but they lost 4,500,” Trump said. “We lost 18, and very soon you’re going to see things happening, very soon.
Trump claims near-total control of Strait of Hormuz
“But you have a country there that’s been almost completely destroyed. Their economy is in bad shape. They have inflation of more than 300%.”
Trump later addressed developments in the Strait of Hormuz, saying Washington had achieved near-total control of the area.
“Over the last week in the Strait of Hormuz, where we have almost total control, I would say total control, but every once in a while they put a mine there and disrupt things a little,” he said. “But we have, in effect, almost total control of the Strait of Hormuz.”
Trump also said the volume of oil passing through the strait over the previous three days had reached unprecedented levels.
“And in fact, over the last three days, more oil has come out of the Strait of Hormuz than at any other point in history,” he said. “I’m not just talking about the period since the war. I’m saying at any point in history. There was pent-up demand that had accumulated.”
Axios reported that Trump attended a secret meeting on Iran and Yemen chaired by US Vice President JD Vance and attended by top administration national security aides at Camp David on Friday.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, White House envoy Steve Witkoff, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine all attended the meeting, according to the report.
The report cited three US officials, who told Axios that “things were decided, or at least deeply discussed.”
The White House refused to respond to an Axios request for comment.
The high-level, closed-door meeting comes amid reports that both the US military and Saudi Arabia are preparing to step up military activity in the region.
The US military is considering a major expansion of its naval presence in the Middle East in the coming weeks, including the deployment of three aircraft carriers and accompanying warships to provide greater operational flexibility, The Washington Post reported Friday.
The report said the buildup could also include an additional 20,000 troops, on top of the roughly 50,000 already deployed in the region, as well as up to 150 fighter jets and additional destroyers to defend against missile attacks.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, is considering a significant military offensive against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen aimed at breaking the group’s hold on key coastal areas and securing Red Sea shipping routes, Reuters reported Friday.
The planned operation is intended to reverse gains made by the Houthis last month, when they advanced along the coast and seized control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to people familiar with the plans, including Gulf and Yemeni officials and Western diplomats.
The operation, which could be launched in the coming weeks, would be led on the ground by Yemeni forces overseen by Riyadh and supported by Saudi airstrikes, according to six people familiar with the preparations.
Reuters and Ariella Roitman contributed to this report.