1 month ago
Last Updated:March 07, 2025, 22:33 IST
US President Donald Trump said he wants to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran and sent a letter to its leadership on Thursday saying he hoped they would agree to talk.
US President Donald Trump. (AP Photo)
US President Donald Trump has said that he sent a letter to Iran on Thursday in a bid to negotiate a nuclear deal, saying that he hoped the latter would agree to talk. He also warned the latter of facing possible military action if not.
"I said I hope you’re going to negotiate, because it’s going to be a lot better for Iran," Trump said in an interview with Fox Business Network broadcast on Friday, as reported by news agency Reuters.
The letter, which is likely addressed to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Trump said, “I think they want to get that letter. The other alternative is we have to do something, because you can’t let another nuclear weapon."
However, Iran said that the country would not negotiate so long as the United States applies “maximum pressure." Tehran’s mission to the United Nations told news agency AFP that “we have not received such a letter so far." It was unclear by what means Trump’s missive was transmitted to Tehran.
A landmark 2015 deal negotiated under former president Barack Obama — known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) — imposed curbs on Iran’s nuclear program in return for sanctions relief. It fell apart after Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in 2018 in his first presidential term and reimposed sweeping sanctions. Tehran adhered to the deal until a year after Washington pulled out, but then began rolling back its commitments.
Iran has been cautious about a return to diplomacy since the collapse of the JCPOA.
“We will not enter any direct negotiations with the US so long as they continue their maximum pressure policy and their threats," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the news agency on Friday.
Iran has consistently denied claims that it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Last month, United Nations atomic agency chief Rafael Grossi said Iran was enriching uranium at 60 percent — “almost weapon level" — and that the 2015 deal was an “empty shell" that was “no longer fit for purpose."
(With inputs from agencies)
Location :Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
First Published:March 07, 2025, 18:24 IST
News world Donald Trump Writes To Iran To Negotiate Nuclear Deal, Latter Rejects Talks
