United States President Donald Trump has said he is looking for a “real end” and not just a ceasefire, as Israel and Iran trade air attacks for a fifth straight day.
Trump commented to reporters on Air Force 1 on Tuesday after his early departure from the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Canada.
“I’m not looking for a ceasefire. We’re looking at better than a ceasefire,” he said, reiterating his stance that “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
Earlier, in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump refuted the suggestion he had left the summit to work on a ceasefire in the conflict.
“I have not reached out to Iran for ‘Peace Talks’ in any way, shape, or form,” he said. “If they want to talk, they know how to reach me. They should have taken the deal on the table – Would have saved many lives.”
A sixth round of US-Iran nuclear talks was to have been held on Sunday in Oman. Still, Iran cancelled its participation after Israel launched a surprise bombing campaign on its longtime adversary on Friday.
“The other side (the US) acted in a way that makes dialogue meaningless,” Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Saturday. “You cannot claim to negotiate and at the same time divide work by allowing the Zionist regime (Israel) to target Iran’s territory.”
Trump publicly opposed an Israeli strike on Iran in the weeks leading up to the attacks, saying he preferred diplomacy. But he has since branded them “excellent”, even framing the bombardment as an asset in any potential talks.
Before Israel’s offensive, Iran had rejected a US proposal that included zero uranium enrichment and was slated to offer a counterproposal in a bid to advance the negotiations.
Israel has said its attacks on Iran are necessary to prevent its longtime adversary from getting any closer to building a nuclear weapon. Iran has responded by launching hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel, killing more than 20 people.
