Former President Barack Obama broke his silence on the conflict between the United States and Iran, expressing notable skepticism about the agreement negotiated by Donald Trump, in excerpts from an interview with the program "Good Morning America" on ABC News broadcast on Sunday.
The interview was conducted by Robin Roberts, and Obama was accompanied by his wife Michelle during a visit to the Obama Presidential Center, one day before Trump confirmed the agreement with Tehran.
The former Democratic president directly questioned whether the new understanding can surpass the nuclear agreement of 2015, which he himself negotiated - the JCPOA - and which Trump abandoned in 2018 during his first term.
“It is doubtful that any agreement that arises will be significantly different or a significant improvement over the agreement we initially had and for which we had worked for a long time before we, the U.S., withdrew from it,” Obama stated.
The former president recalled that the 2015 pact "worked for a long period" before Washington decided to abandon it, in a veiled reference to Trump's unilateral decision in May 2018, which argued that the agreement was insufficient and failed to address ballistic missiles or Iranian regional influence.
The JCPOA, signed in Vienna in July 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 group -China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, the U.S., and Germany- limited Iranian uranium enrichment to 3.67% and subjected nuclear facilities to enhanced inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency, in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.
Diplomacy versus force
Obama also issued an implicit warning against the military pressure strategy employed by the Trump administration, without mentioning the president by name.
“This reminds us that, in the face of many complex foreign policy issues, the idea that we can simply impose our will through force or bomb our way to solutions can sometimes be seductive,” stated the former Democratic president.
In contrast, he defended the value of imperfect negotiation: it is preferable to "take the time to explore diplomatic avenues and exhaust the possibilities of reaching agreements that do not solve 100% of the problem, but rather 80 or 90%."
"One might think that we would have learned this lesson a long time ago," Obama lamented.
He added, "One would think that we would have learned the lesson, but it seems that from time to time we have to relearn it."
Beyond the skepticism regarding the content of the agreement, Obama expressed relief at the possibility of an end to the armed conflict.
“I hope the bombings stop and that ordinary people stop suffering the consequences of the war,” declared the former president.
The full interview of Obama with ABC News was scheduled to air this Wednesday, in what promises to be one of the former Democratic president's most direct addresses on the current administration's foreign policy.
The conflict began on February 28, 2026 with a coordinated air offensive by the U.S. and Israel against Iranian nuclear and military facilities, called "Epic Fury Operation."
Iran responded by blocking the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil passes, triggering a global energy crisis.
After months of troubled negotiations, Iran suspended the talks on June 1 due to Israeli attacks in Lebanon and declared a cessation of operations on June 8 - the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, announced this past Saturday that the U.S. and Iran had reached a peace agreement, with the official signing scheduled for Friday, June 19 in Switzerland.
Trump confirmed the deal on Truth Social with a triumphant message: "Let the oil flow!"
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