ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US President Donald Trump on Monday said that “direct talks” between Washington and Tehran have begun, just days after Iranian officials stressed that they are pursuing “indirect negotiations.” Trump additionally expressed his preference for diplomacy but did not rule out military action if the talks are unsuccessful.
"We're having direct talks with Iran, and they have started," Trump told reporters at the White House after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Maybe a deal [with Iran] is going to be made. That would be great. We are meeting very importantly on Saturday [April 12], at almost the highest level,” he added.
The US president’s remarks notably come two days after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday stated that his country is open to “indirect talks” with Washington and ruled out direct engagement.
“In principle, direct negotiations with a party that constantly threatens to resort to force in violation of the United Nations Charter and that expresses contradictory positions by its various officials would be pointless, but we remain committed to diplomacy and are willing to try the path of indirect negotiations,” Araghchi said.
Prior to that, on March 27, Iran said it had responded to a letter from Trump, delivered via Oman, reiterating that it would not engage directly with the US, as long as Washington’s “maximum pressure” campaign was in place.
On March 7, Trump had told Fox Business that he sent a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, signaling openness to negotiations while warning that military action remained on the table if Iran refused to cooperate.
Since returning to office, Trump in early February reinstated his administration’s “maximum pressure” policy on Iran, accusing Tehran of moving “too close” to developing a nuclear weapon.
Despite the pressure, the US president has repeatedly expressed willingness to strike a new deal with Iran.
In his Monday remarks, Trump notably added that both the US and Israel would prefer a diplomatic solution over military confrontation. However the US president also pointed to possible military action against Iran if the talks are unsuccessful.
“I think everybody agrees that doing a deal would be preferable to doing the obvious, and the obvious is not something that I want to be involved with, or frankly, that Israel wants to be involved with, if they can avoid it,” he said.
He threatened that Iran will be in great danger if the talks fail.
On March 29, the US President had warned that “there will be bombing” against Iranian interests if Tehran fails to reach an agreement with Washington over its nuclear program.
“If they don’t make a deal [with the US] there will be bombing, and it will be bombing the likes of which they have never seen before,” Trump told NBC News.
In an indirect response to Trump’s threats, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on March 31 warned of a strong response if Iran is attacked.
“They threaten to commit evil,” but “if evil is committed, the counterattack will definitely be mutually strong,” Khamenei said.
Additionally, a senior aide to Khamenei, Ali Larijani, on the same day suggested that Tehran may pursue nuclear weapons if attacked by the US or Israel. The remarks signalled a possible shift in policy under Khamenei, who has long opposed such weapons on religious grounds.
Amid the heightened tensions, the US has been beefing up its military presence within operational range from Iran.
It recently deployed the USS Carl Vinson and USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier strike groups to the Middle East, along with up to six B-2 stealth bombers stationed at Diego Garcia - a US-British military base in the Indian Ocean. Additional fighter jets and surveillance aircraft have also been moved to the region, alongside Patriot missile defense batteries to bolster air defenses.
