US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (local time) said that the United States is not negotiating with Iran and “something” will happen “fairly soon,”
Speaking to American news network ‘NewsNation’s White House correspondent Libbey Dean, Trump was asked about developments in negotiations with Tehran, Trump initially acknowledged some activity but indicated that the outcome remained uncertain.
“A little bit, but we’ll see what happens,” Trump said when asked whether negotiations with Iran were ongoing.
Asked whether he was done negotiating with the Iranian government, Trump said, “No, I think we’re not negotiating…we are going to have something, one way or the other. It’ll happen fairly soon.”
He added that some people expected developments to take place after the US election, saying, “Most people think, seem to think it’s after the election, and we’re going to see what happens.”
Trump also praised his administration’s approach towards Iran, stating, “But I will say this: what we’ve done with Iran is amazing.”
In the interview, Trump also highlighted the situation between Washington and Tehran as “a little conflict against Iran” and said the United States was performing well on both military and economic fronts.
“I think our sanctions ended the real deal over there. But we’re doing very well militarily and financially against Iran,” he said.
Trump did not specify what action or development he expected to take place “fairly soon” or provide a definitive timeline for the next steps in the US approach towards Iran. But this comes amid the report by The New York Times that the United States and Israel have drawn up plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the American midterm elections, while Tehran has threatened to unveil a weapon it calls the “father of all bombs” amid escalating tensions in West Asia.
According to The New York Times, the US and Israeli militaries have developed specific plans for a short but intensive operation targeting Iran’s energy infrastructure, nuclear facilities, and missile and drone arsenal. Citing US officials and other people briefed on the deliberations, the report said the two militaries have stepped up exercises, including flying aircraft over Iraq to practise strike manoeuvres.
