Iran ‘Ready’ For ‘Any Step’ To Achieve US Deal, Oil Slides Ahead Of Trump SOTU

Tonight, when President Donald Trump will step into the House chamber to deliver his State of the Union address, it will undoubtedly be overshadowed by the prospect of coming conflict with Iran. 

Tehran will be up late (or early), carefully scrutinizing every word of the US leader, anticipating the what’s next at a moment of massive Pentagon build-up in the region, including no less than two carrier groups. Iranian leadership, looking toward the big Trump speech tonight, has just offered that it’s ready to do anything necessary to reach a deal to stave off an attack.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi has declared Tuesday that his country is “ready to take any necessary step to reach a deal with the US” but coupled with a warning that “a strike on Iran is a real gamble.” This momentary or rhetorical ‘concession’ sent oil prices sliding…

Crude Oil Futures Price (WTI)

The big question tonight is whether President Trump will signal if he’s still betting on diplomacy in the days ahead, or if he’ll prepare the American public for full military action if talks fail.

The prospect of a new conflict in the Middle East remains deeply unpopular among Americans – even among many Republicans – recent poll after poll have demonstrated.

Again, the buildup toward a potential military confrontation with Iran has overshadowed the run-up to the address and all other issues – whether immigration, the economy, or even the Supreme Court’s tariff halt decision.

With some 400 million barrels currently stuck on sanctioned tankers, it remains that a breakthrough Trump-Iran deal would suddenly release these supplies on the global market and prices would plunge.

3 days later, Goldman went and charted it https://t.co/9O6rSXcOhz pic.twitter.com/0PLe4CJkDA

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 23, 2026

As for Iran’s ‘readiness’ to do ‘anything’ – it’s really still anything but clear whether the Islamic Republic would actually enter into dialogue on conventional missile limits. This remains unlikely, as reducing this capability would in effect neuter Iran’s ability to defend itself or fight a war.

Will Trump tip his hand? “Bloomberg’s Courtney Subramanian framed Iran as one of the major flashpoints Trump may address as he tries to reset the national mood after a Supreme Court ruling struck down his global tariff regime,” writes one regional source seen as close to the Israeli establishment. Citing Bloomberg, the same source says the SOTU speech “could provide a moment for Trump to explain why military action might be necessary, even as negotiations led by envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner continue in Geneva.”