President Donald Trump has cautioned Iran to renounce any pursuit of nuclear weapons, or risk facing a potential military strike on its atomic infrastructure, Reuters reported.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump asserted that Iran was deliberately stalling progress on nuclear negotiations with the United States. “I think they’re stringing us along,” he stated, following a recent meeting in Oman between US special envoy Steve Witkoff and a senior Iranian official.
Both sides characterized Saturday’s talks as “positive” and “constructive.” A second round is scheduled for the upcoming weekend, likely to be held in Rome, according to a source familiar with the planning.
The talks are described as exploratory in nature, with discussions centered on outlining a broad framework for a potential agreement. However, Trump made it clear that any deal must ensure that Iran abandons all nuclear weapons ambitions.
“Iran has to get rid of the concept of a nuclear weapon. They cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
When questioned whether US options include a military strike on Tehran’s nuclear sites, Trump replied, “Of course it does.”
He added that Iran was “fairly close” to building a nuclear weapon and urged swift action to avoid severe consequences.
Indirect negotiations between the US and Iran took place under former President Joe Biden, but yielded minimal progress.
The last formal agreement—the 2015 international nuclear accord—was brokered by President Barack Obama and subsequently withdrawn from by Trump during his first term.
