President Donald Trump expressed cautious optimism on Thursday about the potential for an agreement with Iran over its nuclear program, suggesting that progress might eliminate the need for military intervention against Tehran.
“We’re getting close to maybe doing a deal without having to do this,” Trump said, hinting at a possible alternative to armed conflict.
“Iran has sort of agreed to the terms. They’re not going to make, I call it in a friendly way, ‘nuclear dust’,” he added, using a casual term to describe Iran’s uranium enrichment activities.
Speaking during a stop in Qatar as part of a broader Middle East visit, Trump emphasized how straightforward the issue really is. “It’s very simple,” he said, referring to a military option. “It’s not like I have to give you 30 pages worth of details. There’s only one sentence: They can’t have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump warned that while diplomacy is preferred, military force remains an option. “There’s a very, very nice step and there’s a violent step — violence like people haven’t seen before.”
He went on to clarify that war is not his desired path. “I don’t want to do the second step. Some people do. Many people do. I don’t want to do that step. So we’ll see what happens. But we’re in very serious negotiations with Iran for long-term peace, and if we do that, it’ll be fantastic.”
The exact meaning of “long-term peace” wasn’t defined in his remarks, leaving some ambiguity about the terms being discussed.
According to an April 16 report in The New York Times, Trump rejected Israeli proposals last month that involved a series of coordinated strikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, opting instead to pursue a diplomatic resolution.
This past weekend, the U.S. and Iran conducted their fourth round of indirect negotiations—the highest-level engagement since Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear agreement in 2018.
Following Trump’s remarks, global oil prices dropped sharply, as markets reacted to the possibility of easing tensions. Trump said his optimism was rooted in recent public statements made by Iranian officials.
“You probably read today the story about Iran,” Trump said, referring to his belief that Tehran had “sort of agreed” to a potential deal. He didn’t cite specific sources, but comments made by Ali Shamkhani, an aide to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, appeared to align with Trump’s assertions.
Shamkhani, speaking to NBC News, stated that Iran would be willing to sign a nuclear agreement under certain conditions, including the lifting of U.S. sanctions. He said Iran would pledge never to produce nuclear weapons, eliminate its reserves of highly enriched uranium, restrict enrichment to peaceful levels, and permit international inspections.
American officials have issued mixed messages regarding whether they might tolerate a deal that lets Iran retain a limited enrichment capability, but recent statements suggest the U.S. remains opposed to such concessions.
Meanwhile, Iran has escalated its uranium enrichment efforts, reaching 60 percent purity—well beyond civilian use—and has blocked access for international monitors at key nuclear facilities. Iran has also continued threatening rhetoric toward Israel.
During Thursday’s event, Trump also praised Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, for discouraging U.S. military action against Iran. “Iran is very lucky to have the emir because he’s actually fighting for them. He doesn’t want us to do a vicious blow to Iran,” Trump said.
At a state dinner the night before, Trump repeated his desire for diplomacy but made clear that if talks fail, military options are on the table. “The non-friendly is a violent course and I don’t want that,” he said. Speaking of Iran’s leadership, he added, “It’s their decision,” while urging Qatar to assist in reaching a resolution.
“It’s a perilous situation, and we want to do the right thing,” Trump said. “We want to do something that’s going to save maybe millions of lives. Because things like that get started and they get out of control.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian issued a defiant statement on Wednesday, pushing back against Trump’s warnings. “He thinks he can come here, chant slogans and scare us. For us, martyrdom is far sweeter than dying in bed. You came to frighten us? We will not bow to any bully,” Pezeshkian declared in a live broadcast on Iranian state television.
Despite ongoing negotiations, the U.S. has not eased up on punitive measures, continuing to apply sanctions that target Iran’s nuclear sector, energy exports, and missile development programs.
Ali Shamkhani, in his interview with NBC News, voiced skepticism about U.S. intentions. “Trump talks about the olive branch, which we have not seen. It’s all barbed wire.”
Still, when asked if Tehran would commit to abandoning nuclear weapons development, dismantling uranium stockpiles, and allowing oversight—if sanctions were lifted immediately—Shamkhani answered, “yes.”
{Matzav.com}