"Trump dissatisfied with Iran ceasefire proposal; National Security meeting set for the Situation Room on the 19th"

[Financial News]  
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U.S. President Donald Trump is dissatisfied with the ceasefire proposal put forward by Iran and will meet again with his National Security Team in the Situation Room at the White House on the 19th (local time), Axios reported on the 18th. Holding a security meeting in the Situation Room is interpreted as a warning that the resumption of war is imminent.
Citing U.S. government sources, Axios reported that the White House believes Iran's ceasefire proposal does not represent any meaningful progress from earlier offers and is insufficient to reach an agreement.
U.S. officials said Trump wants to end the war, but he is considering resuming military action because Iran has not accepted many of his demands and has also rejected meaningful concessions on its nuclear program.
Two U.S. government officials said Trump will summon his top national security team back to the Situation Room on the 19th to discuss military options.
One senior U.S. official explained that if Iran does not change its position, the United States will have no choice but to continue negotiations "through bombs."
Earlier, before receiving Iran's ceasefire proposal on the 17th, Trump told Axios in a phone interview that "time is running out" and warned that if Iran failed to show flexibility, it would be hit "much harder."
A senior U.S. official said Iran's counterproposal was delivered to the United States late on the night of the 17th through mediator Pakistan, but it was only slightly better than before.
The new proposal included more language about Iran's pledge not to pursue nuclear weapons, but it contained no details on uranium enrichment or the transfer of existing highly enriched uranium.
While Iranian state media reported that the United States had agreed to suspend some oil sanctions on Iran during the talks, the U.S. official said any sanctions relief would not come "for free" without a follow-up response from Iran.
The senior U.S. official said, "There has been no real progress," adding, "The current situation is very serious." He continued, "Now is the time for Iran to show sincerity. The United States wants substantive, solid and concrete talks on the nuclear program, but if that does not happen, we will end up talking through bombs, and that would be tragic."
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dympna@fnnews.com Song Kyung-jae Reporter