The US president said on Monday (2/16) that he will participate “indirectly” in crucial talks between himself and the United States on Tehran, which are scheduled for today in Geneva, adding that he believes that Tehran wants to reach a deal.
“I will participate in these talks, indirectly. And they’re going to be very important,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. Tensions are escalating ahead of the talks, with the US deploying a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East. The US military is preparing for the possibility of a protracted military campaign if the talks fail, .
“They want to make a deal (…) I don’t think they want to suffer the consequences of not making a deal,” he said, addressing the Iranian authorities.
Asked about the prospects for a deal, Trump said Iran has long taken a tough stance in negotiations, but learned the consequences of that approach last summer when the U.S. bombed Iranian nuclear facilities.
Trump hinted that this time Tehran has an incentive to negotiate. The remarks contrasted with those of the US president on Friday, when he embraced the possibility of regime change in Iran and expressed frustration over decades of failed talks.
Trump on Iran: I don’t think they want the consequences of not making a deal.
— Acyn (@Acyn)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with the head of the UN nuclear watchdog on Monday, saying in a post on X that he was in Geneva to “achieve a fair and equitable deal.” “What’s not on the table: bowing to threats,” Aragchi said.
Joined by nuclear experts, I will meet on Mon for deep technical discussion. Also meeting ahead of diplomacy with U.S. on Tues.
I am in Geneva with real ideas to achieve a fair and equitable deal.
What is not on the table: submission before threats— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi)
The obstacles
Despite Trump’s comments that Iran is seeking a deal, the talks face significant potential hurdles.
Washington is seeking to broaden the scope of the talks to include non-nuclear issues, such as Iran’s missile stockpile. Tehran states that it is willing to discuss only limitations on its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of sanctions and that it will not accept zero uranium enrichment. He also argues that its missile capabilities are non-negotiable.
Speaking during a visit to Hungary on Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said reaching a deal with Tehran would be difficult.
“I think there’s an opportunity to reach a deal diplomatically … but I don’t want to overstate it,” Rubio said. “It will be difficult. It’s been very difficult for anyone to make meaningful deals with Iran because we’re dealing with radical Shiite clerics who make theological decisions, not geopolitical ones.”
Rubio:
Doing a deal with Iran is not easy. I said it yesterday, I’ll repeat it again today.
We have to understand that Iran ultimately is governed, and its decisions are governed, by Shia clerics, radical Shia clerics.
These people make policy decisions on the basis of pure…
— Clash Report (@clashreport)
Questions about uranium reserves
The International Atomic Energy Agency has been calling on Iran for months to explain what happened to its stockpile of 440 kilograms (970 pounds) of highly enriched uranium after the Israeli-US strikes. It also calls on it to allow full resumption of inspections, including at three key facilities bombed in June last year: Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for any attack, which would choke off a fifth of global oil flows and send crude prices soaring. “I don’t think they want the consequences of no deal,” Trump said.
US pressure on Tehran to renounce enrichment
Before the US strikes in June, US-Iran nuclear talks had bogged down over Washington’s demand that Tehran abandon uranium enrichment on its soil, which the US sees as a path to an Iranian nuclear weapon.
“We could have had a deal instead of sending in the B-2s to neutralize their nuclear capability. And we had to send in the B-2s,” Trump said, referring to the US stealth bombers with “bat wings” that carried out the bombings.
Iran carried out a military drill on Monday in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital international sea lane and oil export route from Gulf Arab states, which are appealing for diplomacy to end the dispute.
