President Donald Trump pens letter to Iran’s supreme leader, giving the Islamic republic two months to reach an agreement with the US regarding its nuclear program.
By World Israel News Staff
President Donald Trump made an overture earlier this month to Iran, calling on Tehran to engage in negotiations with the U.S. to secure a new agreement on Iran’s nuclear program, a Trump administration official said Wednesday.
On Wednesday, Axios revealed that the president penned a letter to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, urging the Islamic republic to return to the negotiating table.
Citing one U.S. official and two other sources briefed on the letter, the report claimed that in the letter, the president gave Iran two months to reach an agreement with the U.S.
While it is unclear when the two-month countdown began or what consequences Iran would face if it fails to reach a deal with the U.S., sources quoted by Wednesday’s report said the missive was “tough.”
The White House reportedly briefed Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates on the letter before it was conveyed to Iran.
Hours later, National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes issued a statement to reporters confirming that Trump had reached out to Khamenei.
“President Trump made it clear to Ayatollah Khamenei that he wanted to resolve the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program diplomatically – and very soon – and if this was not possible, there would be other ways to resolve the dispute,” Hughes said.
According to a White House statement, Trump also discussed a possible Iran nuclear deal during his phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday.
The two leaders “discussed the need to stop proliferation of strategic weapons and will engage with others to ensure the broadest possible application,” the White House said. “The two leaders shared the view that Iran should never be in a position to destroy Israel.”
In an interview with conservative pundit Huh Hewitt Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Trump prefers “to work this out diplomatically without a war,” but if necessary, he will “take action” to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
Rubio hinted that should Iran fail to reach a deal with the U.S. and continue to work towards nuclear weapon capacity, the U.S. could attempt regime change in Tehran.
“If the president makes the decision that we need to take action to prevent Iran from having a nuclear capability, we have the ability to do that, and to go further, perhaps even threaten the regime,” he warned.
