U.S. President Donald Trump stated that he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to attack Iran, while expressing optimism about the nuclear talks his administration is holding with Tehran.
Iran has indicated it may consider allowing American inspectors to visit its nuclear facilities as part of the United Nations nuclear monitoring team if an agreement is reached.
When asked whether he told Netanyahu during a recent phone call not to take any action that would hinder diplomacy, Trump responded, “To be honest, I did tell him.”
Pressed again by reporters about what exactly he said to the Israeli leader, Trump said, “I told him I don’t think it’s appropriate; we’re having very good discussions with them.”
The U.S. president added, “I told him it wouldn’t be appropriate to do this now because we are very close to a deal.”
“I think they will reach an agreement, and if we get a deal, many lives will be saved.”
In recent weeks, Tehran and Washington have held five rounds of talks focused on nuclear issues. These are the highest-level contacts since Trump withdrew the U.S. from the nuclear deal Iran had signed with world powers in 2018.
During a visit to Qatar earlier in May, Trump expressed optimism about reaching an agreement with Iran that would avoid military conflict.
Israel views Iran as its main enemy and has repeatedly threatened to strike Tehran’s nuclear sites. Last year, both sides exchanged attacks.
Iran denies Western accusations that it seeks to develop nuclear weapons, insisting its nuclear program is peaceful and civilian in nature.
After Trump pulled the U.S. out of the nuclear deal in 2018, Washington imposed sanctions on the Islamic Republic, including banning all countries from buying Iranian oil.
In response, Iran began violating the terms of the agreement, enriching uranium beyond agreed limits.
While welcoming negotiations with Washington, Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that uranium enrichment “is a non-negotiable issue.” The U.S. insists Iran will not be allowed to enrich uranium even at low levels for civilian purposes, as was permitted in the 2015 nuclear deal.
Currently, Iran enriches uranium up to 60 percent purity — the highest level by any non-nuclear weapons state. However, Tehran remains below the roughly 90 percent enrichment level required for nuclear weapons but far above the 3.67 percent limit set by the 2015 deal.
