Washington: President Donald Trump decides in the next two weeks if the United States will be involved in Israel-Iran air war, the White House said Thursday, raising pressure on Tehran to get to the negotiating table.
With reference to a message from Trump, press secretary in the White House Karoline Leavitt told journalists: “Based on the fact that there is a significant chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision on whether to go within the next two weeks.”
The Republican president has kept the world guessing on his plans and weakening from proposing a quick diplomatic solution to suggesting that the United States may be participating in the fighting on Israel. Wednesday he said no one knew what he would do. A day earlier he thought on social media about killing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and then demanded Iran’s unconditional surrender.
The threats have caused cracks in Trump’s support base between more Hawkish traditional Republicans and the party’s more isolationist elements.
But critics said that in the five months since returning to Embed, Trump has issued a number of deadlines – including to war -leading Russia and Ukraine and to other countries in negotiations on trade -star riff – only to suspend these deadlines or allow them to slip.
“I think going to war with Iran is a terrible idea, but no one believes in this ‘two weeks’ bit,” said Democratic Senator Chris Murphy on the social media platform X. “He has used it a million times before to pretend that he might be doing something he is not.
Leavitt told a regular Briefing in the White House that Trump was interested in pursuing a diplomatic solution with Iran, but his highest priority was to make sure Iran couldn’t get a nuclear weapon.
She said any agreement should prohibit the enrichment of uranium by Tehran and eliminate Iran’s ability to achieve a nuclear weapon.
“The president is always interested in a diplomatic solution … If there is a chance of diplomacy, the president will always seize it,” Leavitt said. “But he is not afraid to use strength that I will add.”
Bypassing congress?
Leavitt refused to say if Trump would seek Congress permission for any strikes over Iran. Democrats have raised concerns about reports of CBS and other business that Trump has already approved a plan to attack Iran and bypass Congress, which has the only power to declare war.
Leavitt said US officials remained convinced that Iran had never been closer to getting a nuclear weapon and said it would take Tehran just “a few weeks” to produce such a weapon.
Leavitt’s assessment opposite congress certificate in March from Trump’s Intelligence Chief Tulsi Gabbard. She then said that the US intelligence community continued to judge that Tehran was not working on a nuclear head.
This week, Trump rejected Gabbard’s testimony in March and told journalists, “I don’t care what she said. I think they were very close to having one.”
On Wednesday, Trump Lieutenant Steve Bannon called on caution that the United States joined Israel in an attempt to destroy Iran’s nuclear program.
Israel bombed nuclear targets in Iran on Thursday, and Iran fired missiles and drones against Israel after striking an Israeli hospital overnight when a week’s long air war escalated and none of the sides showed any sign of an exit strategy.
Leavitt said Trump had been informed of the Israeli operation on Thursday and remained in close communication with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. She said Iran was in “a deeply vulnerable position” and would face serious consequences if it did not agree to stop its work on a nuclear weapon.
Iran has weighed wider opportunities to respond to the greatest security challenge since its revolution in 1979.
Three diplomats told Reuters that Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi have spoken by phone several times since Israel began his strikes last week.
