WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump President Donald Trump warned that “time is running out” to negotiate a deal over Iran’s nuclear program, following a steady buildup of U.S. forces in the Gulf region.
He urged Iran on Wednesday to come to the table and strike a deal on its nuclear weapons, or the next U.S. attack would be even worse, but said Tehran would hit back like never before if it happened.
“Hopefully, Iran will quickly ‘come to the table’ and negotiate a fair and equitable agreement that bans its nuclear weapons and is beneficial to all parties.
The US president, who withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal between world powers and Tehran during his first term in the White House, noted that the military attack took place in June after a final warning to Iran.
“The next attack will be even worse! Don’t let it happen again,” Trump wrote.
The US president said a “massive armada” was “moving quickly with great power, enthusiasm and purpose” towards Iran, referring to the massive US Navy.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations had a similar reaction.
“The last time the United States fought unsuccessful wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, we wasted more than $7 trillion and lost more than 7,000 American lives,” the paper quoted President Trump as saying in the X-Post.
The Iranian mission said in capital letters that Tehran was “ready for dialogue based on mutual respect and interests,” but if forced to do so it would defend itself and take “an unprecedented response.”
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President Trump previously said he would “rescue” the protesters involved in Iran’s brutal and unprecedented crackdown on protests earlier this month.
Iran has repeatedly denied seeking to develop nuclear weapons, insisting that its nuclear program is completely peaceful.
The US president said naval forces in the Gulf were larger than those sent to Venezuela before the US military captured the country’s former leader Nicolas Maduro.
President Trump added that the force is “ready, willing and able to quickly carry out its mission, swiftly and violently if necessary.”
Referring to the U.S. attack on Iran’s main nuclear facilities last June (starting during a 12-day war with Israel), President Trump warned, “The next attack will be even worse! Don’t let it happen again.”
Earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Aragushi said that “diplomacy through military threats is ineffective and cannot be beneficial.”
“If they (the US) want the negotiations to materialize, they need to make sure they put aside threats, excessive demands and illogical issues,” he said in televised remarks, according to AFP news agency. — Agency
