President Donald Trump expressed concern that Iran is moving to rebuild its nuclear capabilities and bolster its ballistic missile program after strikes by the US and Israel earlier this year, and threatened to target the country again to prevent Tehran from stockpiling weapons.
“Now I hear that Iran is trying to build up again, and if they are we are going to have to knock them down,” Trump said Monday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “We’ll knock the hell out of them, but hopefully that’s not happening.”
The president also said he would support Israel in strikes if Iran continued with its ballistic missile program, which Netanyahu highlighted earlier this year as “existential” threat along with Tehran’s nuclear development.
“If they will continue with the missiles, yes,” Trump said.
Trump has long vowed to curb Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, launching strikes in June on key facilities in the country, attacks aided by Israel. The US president claimed in the aftermath of the strikes that they had “totally obliterated” a key underground site for Iran’s nuclear program, even as other assessments questioned the extent of the damage. Iran has since blocked international inspectors from reviewing stocks of near bomb-grade uranium.
Since the strikes, Trump has also suggested that Iran would like to make a deal with the US to curb its nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief, a stance he reiterated on Monday.
“I heard Iran wants to make a deal, if they want to make a deal that’s much smarter. You know, they could have made a deal the last time before we went through, you know, a big attack on them, and they decided not to make the deal,” he said. “They wish they made that deal. So I think again, they should make a deal.”
Iran’s capital has been hit by a wave of protests in recent days after the local currency slumped to a record low, highlighting the strain of soaring inflation and mounting living costs on millions living in the sanctions-hit nation.
Earlier: Protests Erupt in Iran’s Capital as Rial Drops to Record Low
Iran agreed to cap its nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief under a 2015 international deal, only for Trump to abandon the agreement three years later. Talks on a new accord had begun before the June airstrikes, which stalled diplomatic efforts.
Trump’s remarks follow warnings earlier this month from Israel’s intelligence chief accusing Iran of still seeking to develop nuclear weapons and use them against the Jewish state.
“Iran has not abandoned its ambition to destroy the State of Israel,” David Barnea, the head of Mossad, said in a speech.
Earlier: Mossad Chief Says Iran Still Aspires to Build Nuclear Weapons
Iran has long denied that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons but has said that it accelerated its uranium enrichment after Trump withdraw from the earlier nuclear deal.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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