# Trump Remarks on Iran Nuclear Issue and Venezuela Cloud Expectations for Future U.S. Policy

*Thursday, October 22, 2026 at 2:05 AM UTC — Hamer Intelligence Services Desk*

**Published**: 2026-10-22T02:05:35.782Z (3h ago)
**Category**: geopolitics | **Region**: Middle East
**Importance**: 7/10
**Sources**: OSINT
**Permalink**: https://hamerintel.com/data/articles/21178.md
**Source**: https://hamerintel.com/summaries

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**Deck**: Donald Trump has said he never pledged to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and never said the United States would take over Venezuela, comments that add uncertainty to how a future administration under him might approach both countries.

Recent comments by Donald Trump about Iran and Venezuela are adding new uncertainty to how a future administration led by him might handle two of Washington’s most sensitive foreign policy files.

In one set of remarks, Trump said that half of the things he now claims to have done were never discussed during his campaign. He added that he never said the United States was going to stop Iran from having a nuclear weapon. In related comments, he stated that he never said Washington was going to take over Venezuela and repeated that he never said it would stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Separately, Trump said of Iran that “We could leave now, but we want to make sure it lasts for a long time.” While the wider context of that remark isn’t fully detailed in the available reporting, the phrase suggests he was discussing the durability of some kind of arrangement or effect involving Iran.

Taken together, these statements complicate efforts by Iran, Venezuela and U.S. partners to anticipate how a future Trump administration might set its objectives. When a leading political figure says he never promised to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, it raises questions about whether the goal would be to prevent such an outcome outright or to manage it under certain conditions.

For Iran’s leadership, that ambiguity has direct implications for decisions about its nuclear program and regional posture. Officials in Tehran will be weighing the possibility that a future U.S. government under Trump might frame its aims differently from its rhetoric, or might shift course again once in office.

For Venezuela, Trump’s statement that he never said the United States would take over the country matters for a political class that has long viewed U.S. intentions with suspicion. Officials and opposition figures alike will look at those comments when judging how likely it is that Washington under Trump would favor direct pressure, negotiated outcomes, or some mix of the two.

U.S. allies in the Middle East and Latin America that have built their own strategies around assumptions of strong U.S. backing against Iran’s nuclear ambitions or against certain actors in Venezuela now face a more complex picture. Mixed messages about what was or was not promised in the past make it harder for them to predict how firmly Washington would respond to future crises involving those states.

Key developments to watch include how Iranian and Venezuelan officials publicly interpret Trump’s recent remarks, how regional partners adjust their lobbying and planning in Washington, and whether other statements from Trump or his advisers clarify, reinforce, or contradict this latest signaling on Iran’s nuclear issue and Venezuela’s political future.