Politics
‘I HAVE AGREED’: Trump Reveals Potential Breakthrough In Talks With Iran’s Depleted Leadership
President Donald Trump said Sunday that Iran’s new leadership is already looking to cut a deal, just one day after a sweeping U.S.-Israeli strike wiped out Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and rocked the regime in Tehran.
“They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them,” Trump told The Atlantic during a phone interview from Mar-a-Lago. “They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do sooner. They waited too long.”
The comments came as the dust was still settling from the massive military operation that decapitated Iran’s ruling structure and triggered celebrations among regime opponents at home and abroad.
Trump blasted Tehran for dragging its feet through weeks of negotiations and acknowledged that several Iranian officials involved in those talks were killed in the strikes.
“Most of those people are gone,” he told the magazine. “They played too cute.”
He did not say when formal talks would begin.
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According to Reuters, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said a three-member council has temporarily assumed the supreme leader’s duties. The council includes Pezeshkian, Iran’s judiciary chief and a representative of the Guardians Council.
A senior White House official told The Associated Press that Iran’s “new potential leadership” has signaled openness to discussions with Washington. At the same time, the official stressed that the military campaign “continues unabated.”
Trump predicted the Islamic regime’s grip on power is slipping fast, pointing to videos showing public celebrations inside Iran and among expatriate communities in cities such as Los Angeles and New York, The Atlantic reported.
In a video message Saturday, Trump addressed Iranians directly: “Now is the time to seize control of your destiny and to unleash the prosperous and glorious future that is close within your reach.”
He also told CNBC that the operation was “ahead of schedule” and “moving along very well.”
The cost has not been zero. U.S. Central Command said Sunday that three American service members were killed and five others seriously wounded during the opening phase of Operation Epic Fury.
Still, Trump framed the strike as long overdue.
“People have wanted to do it for 47 years,” he told The Atlantic.
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