Trump says he paused attack on Iran, signals a nuclear deal may be possible

Trump said the US would be satisfied if it could reach an agreement with Iran that prevents Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon

Under pressure to reach an accord that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Donald Trump has ​previously expressed hope that a deal was close on ending the war. Picture: AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he had paused a planned attack against Iran after Tehran sent a peace proposal to Washington, and that there was now a "very good chance" of ‌reaching a deal limiting Iran's nuclear program.

After Iran sent the US a new peace proposal, Mr Trump said he had instructed the US military that "we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached."