US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that talks with Iran are set to begin on Monday afternoon, expressing optimism that an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear programme could be reached.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said he decided to cancel a planned large-scale military strike after appeals from Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar to give diplomacy a chance.
“We were asked by the three primary groups. We were also asked by Iran very strongly,” Trump said. “They said they’d like to make a deal.”
He said the planned military operation was halted after Iran and its regional neighbours urged Washington to refrain from taking military action.
“It was going to be a massive attack. They asked us not to do it. They said, ‘Please don’t do it.’ Their neighbours said that too. We are just going to see whether or not we can make a deal,” he said.
Trump added that Saudi Arabia also believed an agreement was close, particularly on the future of the Strait of Hormuz and what he described as Iran’s eventual denuclearisation.
Asked whether Tehran faced a deadline, Trump said no specific timetable had been set but stressed that the United States remained ready to use force if negotiations failed.
“We’re ready to go anytime we want. Would I rather make a deal? I’m not looking to kill people because people die, a lot of people die, and we don’t want that,” he said.
Trump claimed the cancelled operation would have been devastating for Iran and said the country would have taken many years to recover. He declined to comment on whether Iran’s energy infrastructure would have been among the intended targets.