U.S. President Donald Trump has said he’s confident that the United States will come out victorious in its ongoing standoff with Iran and that Washington will win “either militarily or on paper” when diplomacy continues, and regional tensions escalate.
When asked about the future of U.S.-Iran relations, Trump also suggested going to meet with Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, if current negotiations can be resolved for talks (if things go well). That is one of the clearest signs to date that, despite the military pressure on Iran, the White House remains open to negotiations, the White House has said.
Trump said talks with Iran are evolving positively and indicated that progress could be on the way. “We will probably meet at some point, depending on how it all works out,” he said, talking about Khamenei’s role in the ongoing negotiations. Trump said the Iranian leader is actively involved in the talks to end hostilities and reach a larger agreement between the two countries.
The U.S. president said that preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons is a non-negotiable goal. Trump claimed that Iranian negotiators have already agreed that Tehran will not pursue a nuclear weapon and hailed it as a breakthrough in the talks.
At the same time, Trump remained hardline on what would happen to the country. He said that the United States would win if it could win the military war or if it could reach peace through negotiations.
The comments come as there are ongoing efforts to formalise a ceasefire and resolve key issues such as Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief, and the future of enriched uranium stockpiles. Both sides have said that they are interested in the deal, but have yet to reach out to one another as to what will happen in the long term.
Trump recently said that he does not necessarily need a formal agreement to secure U.S. objectives regarding Iran’s enriched uranium, but conceded that negotiations are preferable. He added that he would speak to Khamenei only if a bigger deal occurred.
A Trump-Khamenei face-to-face meeting would mark a significant moment of cross-border diplomacy in one of the most important geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East. Trump has made it clear that he knows the U.S. is the only way the conflict will end with talks or more confrontations, and he’s not looking forward to it.
