President Donald Trump speaks during a Governors Working Breakfast in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday. He told a reporter he’s considering limited military strikes on Iran. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
President Donald Trump said Friday he’s considering a limited military strike on Iran one day after saying he plans to make a decision in the next 10 to 15 days about whether to attack the regime amid talks to limit its nuclear program.
Trump provided a brief update on U.S. demands on Iran during a White House breakfast with U.S. governors, CNBC reported. A reporter at the event asked him if he was considering limited military strikes.
“I guess I can say that I am considering that,” Trump said.
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report Thursday that Trump was thinking about limited strikes. People familiar with the plans said an opening assault would target military or government sites. If Iran still didn’t agree to U.S. demands, there would be larger strikes against the country.
An unnamed senior official in the region of Iran told The Hill on Friday that a limited strike would threaten the chance of an agreement.
“I think any strikes will make the Iranians walk away from the talks, but how it evolved after that, I don’t know, it’s anybody’s guess,” the official said.
On Thursday, Trump said he thought 10 to 15 days was “enough time” for the United States and Iran to come to an agreement.
“We’re going to make a deal or get a deal, one way or the other,” he said.
Meanwhile, the United States has put military forces in position in the Middle East in preparation for possible force against Iran. A strike could take place as soon as this weekend, with naval and air forces quickly coming into place.
In recent weeks, the United States has moved warships to the Indian Ocean as Trump postured over Iran’s killing and detainment of thousands of protesters against the Iranian regime.
Negotiations that took place Tuesday in Geneva didn’t end with a resolution on Iran’s nuclear program, but Iranian officials said they agreed with U.S. negotiators on a “set of guiding principles.”
This week in Washington
President Donald Trump speaks alongside Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Lee Zeldin in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Thursday. The Trump administration has announced the finalization of rules that revoke the EPA’s ability to regulate climate pollution by ending the endangerment finding that determined six greenhouse gases could be categorized as dangerous to human health. Photo by Will Oliver/UPI | License Photo
