Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump declared that a ceasefire had “terminated” hostilities against Iran, as he sought to bolster his argument that he does not need lawmakers’ permission to continue the conflict.
In a letter to congressional leaders on May 1, Trump said there has been no exchange of fire with Iran since the ceasefire. “The hostilities that began on February 28, 2026, have terminated,” he said.
Under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, a US President can wage military action for only 60 days before ending it, asking the Congress for authorization or seeking a 30-day extension due to “unavoidable military necessity regarding the safety of United States Armed Forces” while withdrawing forces.
Trump said he considered the war powers law unconstitutional. Both Republican and Democratic presidents have contended the measure violated the Constitution because it sets limits on the President’s powers as commander-in-chief. Legal experts say the matter has not been decided by the courts.
“We had a ceasefire, so that gives you additional time,” Trump said before leaving Washington for Florida. Congressional Democrats, who have tried repeatedly to pass war powers legislation that would force Trump to end the war or come to Congress for authorization, dismissed that characterization, saying there was nothing in the 1973 law allowing for a ceasefire.
‘Iran still a threat’ In his letter to the Congress, Trump acknowledged that the conflict may not be resolved. He said Iran still poses a “significant” threat to the United States and its armed forces. Trump’s fellow Republicans, who hold slim majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives and rarely break from Trump, have voted almost unanimously to block every resolution seeking to end the conflict.
On May 2, Iranian state news agency IRNA said Tehran had sent its latest proposal for negotiations with the U.S. to Pakistani mediators. Trump swiftly rejected it.
