US President Donald Trump has disclosed that he was considering whether the United States would join Israeli strikes on Iran and said that Tehran had reached out to seek negotiations on ending the conflict.
Speaking as he watched the installation of a new flagpole at the White House on Wednesday, Trump added that his patience “had already run out” with Iran and reiterated his call for the Islamic republic’s “unconditional surrender”.
“I may do it; I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do,” Trump told reporters on the South Lawn when asked if he had decided whether to launch US air strikes.
“I can tell you this: Iran’s got a lot of trouble, and they want to negotiate.”
Trump disclosed that Iran had even suggested sending officials to the White House for talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme in a bid to end Israel’s air assault but added that it was “very late”.
“I said it’s very late to be talking. We may meet. There’s a big difference between now and a week ago, right? Big difference,” Trump added.
“They’ve suggested that they come to the White House. That’s, you know, courageous, but it’s, like, not easy for them to do.”
When asked if it was too late to negotiate, he responded, “Nothing is too late.”
Trump had preferred a diplomatic approach to ending Iran’s nuclear programme, hoping to restore the agreement he tore up during his first term in 2018.
However, since Israel initiated strikes on Iran six days ago, Trump has rallied behind his crucial partner and is now considering using US military power against Tehran as well.
On Tuesday, Trump launched a series of bellicose tweets on social media, labelling Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, an “easy target” and demanding Iran’s “unconditional surrender!”
Khamenei stated Wednesday that the country will never surrender and warned the US of “irreparable damage” if it intervenes.
When asked on Wednesday what he meant by his previous statement, Trump said, “Two very simple words.” It’s quite simple: unconditional surrender.
“That means I’ve had it, okay? I’ve had it. I give up, no more. We go and blow up all the nuclear stuff that’s all over the place,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, Trump urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue Israel’s fight against Iran. Iran has responded with salvos of ballistic missiles.
When asked what he told Netanyahu in a call on Tuesday, he replied, “Keep going. I speak to him every day; he’s a terrific man who accomplishes a lot.”
The US president, however, rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin’s offer to intercede in the Israel-Iran confrontation, stating that Russia should first stop its own war in Ukraine.
“He actually offered to help mediate; I said, ‘Do me a favour, mediate your own. Let’s mediate Russia first, okay? You can worry about this later,” Trump said.
Iran, however, denied it had offered to send officials to Washington.
“No Iranian official has ever asked to grovel at the gates of the White House,” Iran’s mission to the UN said in a post on X.
“The only thing more despicable than his lies is his cowardly threat to ‘take out’ Iran’s supreme leader.”
