Trump says he is considering limited strike on Iran as talks crawl toward draft deal
US President Donald Trump said he is weighing a limited military strike on Iran, escalating pressure on Tehran even as Iranian officials claimed a draft agreement with Washington to curb its nuclear program could be ready within days.
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Trump has repeatedly warned that “bad things” would happen if Iran does not strike a deal within a deadline he first set at 10 days and later extended to 15. Asked by a reporter whether he was contemplating a limited strike, he said: “The most I can say – I am considering it.”
The remarks came as Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said negotiators in Geneva made enough progress this week to shape a proposal “in the next two, three days.” He added that, after final approval in Tehran, the document would be handed to Steve Witkoff, described as Trump’s main Middle East negotiator.
Araghchi also said the United States had not asked Iran to end uranium enrichment, contradicting US officials’ public positions. “We have not offered any suspension, and the US side has not asked for zero enrichment,” he told the US network MS NOW. “What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran’s nuclear programme, including enrichment, is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever.”
His comments clash with statements from senior US officials, including Trump, who has insisted Iran must not enrich uranium at any level. Western governments accuse Tehran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, which Iran denies, saying it has the right to enrich for civilian use.
Tehran is pushing for an end to US sanctions that have hammered its economy. Economic hardship helped ignite protests in December that grew into a nationwide anti-government movement last month; thousands were killed in a security crackdown, rights groups say.
The sides met Feb. 6 in Oman for their first talks since negotiations collapsed during last June’s 12-day Iran-Israel war, when the United States joined by striking Iranian nuclear facilities. Since then, Washington has combined diplomacy with a regional military buildup while trading threats with Tehran.
On Wednesday, Trump reiterated his stance: “We have to make a meaningful deal otherwise bad things happen,” he said at the inaugural meeting of the “Board of Peace,” his initiative for postwar Gaza. Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, warned that US bases, facilities and assets would be “legitimate targets” if Washington carries out an attack.
Araghchi sought to downplay brinkmanship. “There is no ultimatum,” he said, adding both sides want a “fast deal.” With sanctions biting, “any day that sanctions are terminated sooner it would be better for us,” he said. Washington has also sought to fold Iran’s ballistic missile program and its backing for regional militant groups into talks—priorities pushed by Israel.
Israel’s military said it remains on “defensive alert” regarding Iran, while public guidance has not changed. At sea, the US has surged naval power: the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and escort ships entered the Gulf in January, and Trump has now ordered a second carrier, the Gerald Ford, to deploy to the Middle East. Iran staged drills this week in the Gulf and around the Strait of Hormuz in a parallel show of force.
Whether negotiators can finalize a draft under intensifying deadlines—and with warships massing nearby—remains the central question as Washington and Tehran test the limits of diplomacy and deterrence.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
