Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the administration was attempting to negotiate with bombs to enhance its diplomatic position with Iran.
The administration hopes military pressure will force Iran to negotiate, but evidence suggests it only increases stubbornness.
Trump's approach risks prolonging a pattern where tactical wins fail to achieve strategic triumph in the conflict.
AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.
The Trump administration is making a new bid to prove a core assumption the Iran war so far suggests is flawed: that punishing strikes from a far superior US military force will force Tehran to capitulate.
