US President Donald Trump arrives for a "Keep America Great" campaign rally at Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio, on January 9, 2020.

President Donald Trump scored a "modest win" this week in the way he handled escalating tensions with Iran, according to a former American ambassador to Singapore.

"It's not over yet, but I think Trump has more or less prevailed this past week," said Frank Lavin, who is currently the CEO and founder of business consultancy Export Now.

"I think it is a modest win, but look, Iran's not going away," he told CNBC's "Capital Connection" Friday. "Iran's been in this business of … mischief and wars and terrorism for 40 years now, so they're going to have another time, another go at this as well."

Simon Baptist, global chief economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit, agreed with the sentiment. "Iran is still pushing toward a nuclear bomb in the same way as North Korea," he said. "They can get there, and it's going to be tough to stop them in a confrontational way."

"Without negotiations, I see that conflict simmering for now, but probably boiling over in the future," he added.