The White House on Wednesday warned that Iran would be “wise” to do a deal with the US as President Donald Trump once again hinted at military action.
The two sides recently resumed indirect talks, mediated by Oman, after Trump repeatedly threatened military action against Iran over a deadly crackdown on protesters last month.
A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran in June last year, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites.
Photo: EPA
“Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump and with his administration,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.
On Wednesday, Trump again suggested the US might strike Iran in a post on his Truth Social site, with a US military buildup under way in the Middle East.
He warned the UK against giving up sovereignty over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean, saying that the archipelago’s Diego Garcia air base might be needed were Iran not to agree a deal, “in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous regime.”
CNN and CBS on Wednesday reported that the US military would be ready to launch strikes against Iran as early as this weekend, although Trump has reportedly not made a final decision yet.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Trump has been briefed on his military options with “all of them designed to maximize damage,” including a campaign to “kill scores of Iranian political and military leaders, with the goal of overthrowing the government,” unnamed US officials told the newspaper.
Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi said Tehran was “drafting” a framework for future talks with the US.
Iran and the US held a second round of Oman-mediated negotiations on Tuesday in Geneva, Switzerland.
Araghchi said then that Tehran had agreed with Washington on “guiding principles,” but US Vice President J.D. Vance said that Iran had not yet acknowledged all of Washington’s red lines.
Speaking on Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted: “We do not want war,” but suggested Tehran could not give in to US demands.
“From the day I took office, I have believed that war must be set aside. But if they are going to try to impose their will on us, humiliate us and demand that we bow our heads at any cost, should we accept that?” Pezeshkian said.
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