President Donald Trump (AP/Evan Vucci)
The Trump administration provided a direct line that the Iranians could call when they’re ready to talk, CNN reported.
By World Israel News Staff
The White House has passed a phone number along to the Swiss to share with the Iranians should they want to call President Trump directly, CNN reported on Friday.
The choice of Switzerland may seem unusual, but the Swiss carry out diplomatic duties on behalf of the U.S. in Iran and serve as a channel for diplomacy.
“What I would like to see with Iran, I would like to see them call me,” the president said in the White House on Thursday.
A diplomatic source tells CNN that the Swiss probably won’t give the number to the Iranians unless asked, something the Iranians are highly unlikely to do, he says.
Seeming to confirm the source’s opinion, an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps commander said on Friday that Iran wouldn’t engage in talks with the Americans.
“Negotiations with Americans will not take place, and Americans will not dare to take military action against us,” said IRGC Lieutenant Commander for Political Affairs Brigadier General Yadollah Javani.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran rose in the last week. Last Sunday, National Security Adviser John Bolton announced that the U.S. would send the USS Abraham Lincoln and a bomber squadron to the Mideast following intelligence reports that Iran intended to attack U.S. forces in the region.
Iran then announced Wednesday in letters to European signatories to the 2015 nuclear deal that it would restart its uranium enrichment if the agreement wasn’t renegotiated. Trump imposed a fresh set of sanctions on Iran that day targeting the country’s iron, steel, aluminum and copper sectors.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNBC recently, “The United States is preparing all its military and diplomatic tools if Iran chooses to act in the wrong way.”
Last Tuesday, Secretary Pompeo made an announced, lightning trip to Iraq to show support for the country against Iranian influence.
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