US President Donald Trump stated yesterday that negotiations with the Iranians are ongoing despite the rising tensions between the two countries, saying: “It could happen at any time. Maybe it won’t, but it could happen at any time.”
elchi reports that President Trump commented on the Iran issue while speaking to journalists after inspecting ongoing repairs at a fountain near the Washington Monument.
Trump stated that despite US military airstrikes on two Iranian facilities, negotiations with the Tehran administration are continuing.
When asked if a deal with Iran was imminent, Trump replied, “It could happen at any time. Maybe it won’t, but it could happen at any time. I believe they want this deal more than I do,” signaling that they are close to an agreement. Urging Tehran to sign the deal as soon as possible, Trump said: “They better sign the deal quickly. If they don’t, they will suffer a lot.”
“They were firing at us, and we returned fire.”
Trump stated that Iran had attacked two US destroyers passing through the Strait of Hormuz, but that none of the destroyers were damaged in these attacks, adding, “They were firing at us, and we returned fire.”
Trump claimed that his main expectation regarding Iran is that “Iran must not possess nuclear weapons” and that the Iranians have accepted this, though they have not yet signed the agreement, saying: “We will not give them the right to possess nuclear weapons; the chance of that is zero, and they know it and have accepted it. Let’s see if they will be ready to sign.”
Trump expressed his belief that Iran would hand over enriched uranium to them, but emphasized that he would proceed with caution until this matter is clarified.
Trump explained why he halted the “Freedom” operation
Trump also explained why he initiated the “Freedom” operation, which aimed to allow commercial ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and why he halted it 36 hours later.
He noted that Pakistan told them “such an operation would not be beneficial while negotiations are ongoing” and added:
“Marshal (Asim Munir) and the Prime Minister (Shehbaz Sharif) asked us not to do it. If necessary, we will return to doing it. But they asked us not to do it during the negotiations.”
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