President Donald Trump warned Iran yesterday that it must make a deal over its nuclear programme or “really bad things” will happen, and appeared to set a deadline of no more than 10 to 15 days before the US might take action.
Amid a massive US military buildup in the Middle East that has fueled fears of a wider war, Trump said negotiations with Iran were going well but insisted Tehran has to reach a “meaningful” agreement.
“Otherwise bad things happen,” Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran, told the first meeting of his Board of Peace in Washington.
Trump spoke of the US air strikes carried out in June, saying Iran’s nuclear potential had been “decimated,” adding “we may have to take it a step further or we may not.”
“You’ll be finding out over the next probably 10 days,” he said, without elaborating.
US threats to bomb Iran, with the two sides far apart in talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme, have pushed up oil prices, and a Russian corvette warship yesterday joined planned Iranian naval drills in the Gulf of Oman, a vital sea route for global energy.
Iranian and US negotiators met on Tuesday and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said they had agreed on “guiding principles.” White House Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday, however, that the two sides remained apart on some issues.
Trump said “good talks are being had,” and a senior US official said Iran would make a written proposal on how to address US concerns.
Trump called on Tehran to join the US on the “path to peace.”
“They can’t have a nuclear weapon, it’s very simple,” he said. “You can’t have peace in the Middle East if they have a nuclear weapon.”
Iran has resisted making major concessions on its nuclear programme, though insisting it is for peaceful purposes. The US and Israel in the past have accused Tehran of trying to develop a nuclear bomb. Earlier yesterday, Russia warned against an “unprecedented escalation of tension” around Iran yesterday and urged restraint amid the US military buildup in the region, which a senior American official said should be complete by mid-March.
Trump has sent aircraft carriers, warships and jets to the region, raising the prospect of another attack on the Islamic Republic. The United States and Israel bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities and some military sites last June. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss Iran on February 28, the senior US official said. Washington wants Iran to entirely give up uranium enrichment, a process used to create fuel for atomic power plants but that can also provide material for a warhead.
The US and ally Israel also want Iran to give up long-range ballistic missiles, stop supporting groups around the Middle East and stop using force to quell internal protests.
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