US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he was unsure whether the US would strike Iranian nuclear facilities, adding that Iran now appeared willing to negotiate.
During a media briefing outside the White House, Trump mocked a reporter who asked whether the US planned to attack Iran. "I can’t say that, right? You don’t seriously think I’m going to answer that? ‘Will you strike the Iranian nuclear component, and what time, exactly, sir? Sir, would you strike it? Would you please inform us so we can be there and watch?’" he quipped.
"I may do it, I may not do it—nobody knows what I’m going to do," Trump continued. "But I can tell you this: Iran is in a lot of trouble. And now they want to negotiate. I said, why didn’t you negotiate with me before all this war, death, and destruction? Why didn’t you negotiate two weeks ago? You could have done fine. You would still have a country."
His remarks came hours after Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rejected Trump’s demand for unconditional surrender.
In a series of posts on X, Khamenei issued a stern warning to the former US president, stating, "They [the US] should direct their threats at those who fear being threatened."
"The US President threatens us with his absurd rhetoric, demanding the Iranian people surrender to him. Such threats hold no power over our nation," he added.
In another post, Khamenei wrote, "It demonstrates poor judgement to command the Iranian people to capitulate. Surrender to what? We shall never yield to aggression. This embodies both Iran’s principled stance and national character."
