Trump doesn't think Iran deal needed after facilities ‘blown up to kingdom come'
'We are going to talk to them next week, with Iran. We may sign an agreement. I don't know…I don't care if I have an agreement or not,' he said.
'The only thing we would be asking for is what we were asking for before…we want no nuclear, but we destroyed the nuclear… it's blown up to kingdom come. I don't care very strongly about it. If we got a document, it wouldn't be bad.'
Trump's comments during a Nato summit in the Netherlands come amid conflicting reports about the damage US strikes did to Iran's Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear facilities over the weekend.
On Wednesday, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said the country's nuclear facilities had been 'badly damaged' by the American strikes.
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
But a day earlier, several US media outlets reported unnamed sources briefed on a battle damage assessment by the Defence Intelligence Agency that claimed the US strikes had only set Iran's programme back a few months. CNN cited one source as saying that some of Iran's centrifuges were 'intact'.
Trump confirmed the leak was legitimate, but accused American media outlets of misrepresenting the assessment.
'The document said 'it could be limited or it could be very severe [damage]'… and you didn't choose to put that,' he said, addressing a CNN reporter. CNN was the first to report the leak.
Trump said the US received more intelligence about the damage after the report, including by speaking with sources on the ground in Iran with access to Iran's nuclear programme.
What the Israel-Iran-US conflict taught Pakistan Read More »
'We have also spoken to people who have seen the site. The site is obliterated. Everything nuclear is down there. They didn't take it out,' he said.
Trump was likely referring to reports that Iran was able to move a stockpile of uranium from sites before the US struck them.
An Arab official briefed on the matter previously told Middle East Eye that Iran had received advance warning of the US strikes. Amwaj Media first reported that Tehran was notified before the US attacked.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that just five days into the war, its inspectors lost track of Iran's 409 kilograms of highly enriched uranium. That amount, which could be easily transported in a container by truck, is enough for 10 nuclear warheads if Iran were to pursue weaponisation.
Before Israel's attack, Iran and the US were in talks to curb the Islamic Republic's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Tuesday that his country was willing to return to negotiations over its nuclear programme, according to state media.
Since launching strikes on Iran over the weekend, Trump has moved to de-escalate tensions. He thanked Iran on Monday for providing advance notice about its retaliatory strike on the US's al-Udeid military base in Qatar.
Trump announced a ceasefire to the war a few hours after the attack. On Tuesday, he lashed out at both Israel and Iran when it appeared to wobble, saying the two foes "have been fighting so long and so hard that they don't know what the fuck they're doing'.
Speaking at the Nato summit, Trump said both Iran and Israel were 'tired [and] exhausted' and 'satisfied to go home and get out'.
He also said he would have no problem with Iran selling its oil to China. The US slapped sanctions on Iran's oil sales to China during the nuclear talks.
'They just had a war. They fought it bravely. They are in the oil business…they are going to need money to put that country back into shape….If they are going to sell oil, they are going to sell oil,' Trump said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Middle East Eye
3 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
US Democrat Ro Khanna faces backlash for TV appearance with anti-Muslim legislator
US Congressman Ro Khanna is facing a deluge of criticism from activists for appearing on a news segment with an anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian lawmaker. Khanna appeared alongside Republican Congressman Randy Fine in an interview on NewsNation on Thursday, where the politicians discussed the impact of US President Donald Trump's sprawling budget bill, which he and many of his supporters have referred to as the "big, beautiful bill". The interview primarily centred around Medicaid cuts that will result in over 17 million Americans losing access to healthcare. During the interview, Fine repeatedly claimed that "illegal migrants" were benefitting from Medicaid, whilst Khanna emphasised the false nature of those claims and his opposition to the bill. At the end of the interview, Khanna said, "One of the reasons I'm proud is you can have a Democrat of Hindu faith standing side by side with a Republican of Jewish faith having a civil conversation on your show. And we need more of that in this country to bring this country together." New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters For several years, Fine has faced criticism for his incendiary comments against Palestinians, his support for Israel's war on Gaza, as well as his advocacy for the withholding of humanitarian aid from Palestinians. More than 56,000 Palestinians have been killed as a result of the war, which several countries, as well as many international rights groups and experts, now qualify as an act of genocide. This was nauseating to watch. How disgraceful for @RoKhanna to lend credibility to this deplorable Islamophobe who regularly spews some of the most disgusting racist bile against Arabs and Muslims. You're talking about it like he's some tolerant religious man. 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮 — B L A K E L E Y™℠©® LLC (@_iamblakeley) July 4, 2025 The Florida representative has called for called for Gaza to be destroyed, and in May, during an appearance on Fox News, advocated for the use of nuclear weapons on Gaza. In November 2023, while serving as a Florida state representative, Fine voted against a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, claiming that those supporting it were "putting every Jewish child in the state at risk". On 10 October 2023, Fine had the Israeli military mark an artillery shell with 'regards from Randy Fine'. The shell was set to be fired at Gaza. In a statement issued on X on Friday, Khanna said that he didn't know about Fine's views and stopped short of apologising for sharing the screen with the Republican lawmaker. Khanna later tweeted: "I reject categorically his views about Palestinians." "I try to always be civil and did not know about his comments. [Chris] Cuomo booked us both. But I exposed the deep betrayal the cuts in Medicaid are for working-class Americans. We need to get the facts out in new mediums, where people who may not be for us will still hear," Khanna said. In June, the Council on American Islamic Relations (Cair) designated Fine as an anti-Muslim extremist for his views on Islam and Palestinians. In its statement issued at the time, Cair called on 'congressional leadership to condemn his actions, initiate formal censure, and remove him from all committee assignments'. No congressional action has been taken to censure him. Khanna, meanwhile, has previously faced sharp criticism for meeting with the anti-Muslim commentator Abhijeet Iyer-Mitra during his visit to India in 2023. At the time, the Indian American Muslim Council said it was "deeply disappointed to see Khanna engaging with a far-right Islamophobe" and condemned him for embracing those who "enable [this] cycle of hate and violence against Muslims".
Gulf Today
4 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Russia hammers Kyiv in largest missile and drone barrage since war in Ukraine began
Waves of drone and missile attacks targeted Kyiv overnight into Friday in the largest aerial attack since Russia's war in Ukraine began, injuring 23 people and inflicting damage across multiple districts of the capital. Russia launched 550 drones and missiles across Ukraine overnight, the country's air force said. The majority were Shahed drones, while Russia used 11 missiles in the attack. Throughout the night, Associated Press journalists in Kyiv heard the constant buzzing of drones overhead and the sound of explosions and intense machine gun fire as Ukrainian forces tried to intercept the aerial assault. Kyiv was the primary target of the attack. At least 23 people were injured, with 14 hospitalized, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 270 targets, including two cruise missiles. Another 208 targets were lost from radar and presumed jammed. Russia successfully hit eight locations with nine missiles and 63 drones. Debris from intercepted drones fell across at least 33 sites. The attack came hours after President Donald Trump held a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and made his first public comments on his administration's decision to pause some shipments of weapons to Ukraine. That decision affects munitions, including Patriot missiles, the AIM-7 Sparrow air-to-air missile and shorter-range Stinger missiles. They are needed to counter incoming missiles and drones, and to bring down Russian aircraft. It's been less than a week since Russia's previous largest aerial assault of the war. Ukraine's air force reported that Russia fired 537 drones, decoys and 60 missiles in that attack. Emergency services reported damage in at least five of the capital's 10 districts. In Solomianskyi district, a five-story residential building was partially destroyed and the roof of a seven-story building caught fire. Fires also broke out at a warehouse, a garage complex and an auto repair facility. In Sviatoshynskyi district, a strike hit a 14-story residential building, sparking a fire. Several vehicles also caught fire nearby. Blazes were also reported at non-residential facilities. In Shevchenkivskyi district, an eight-story building came under attack, with the first floor sustaining damage. Falling debris was recorded in Darnytskyi and Holosiivskyi districts. Ukraine's national railway operator, Ukrzaliznytsia, said drone strikes damaged rail infrastructure in Kyiv. Associated Press
Gulf Today
4 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Trump says he expects Hamas decision in 24 hours on 'final' peace proposal
US President Donald Trump said on Friday it would probably be known in 24 hours whether the Palestinian group Hamas has agreed to accept what he has called a "final proposal" for an Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza. The president also said he had spoken to Saudi Arabia about expanding the Abraham Accords, the deal on normalization of ties that his administration negotiated between Israel and some Gulf countries during his first term. Trump said on Tuesday Israel had accepted the conditions needed to finalise a 60-day ceasefire with Hamas, during which the parties will work to end the war. He was asked on Friday if Hamas had agreed to the latest ceasefire deal framework, and said: "We'll see what happens, we are going to know over the next 24 hours." A source close to Hamas said on Thursday the Islamist group sought guarantees that the new US-backed ceasefire proposal would lead to the end of Israel's war in Gaza. Two Israeli officials said those details were still being worked out. Dozens of Palestinians were killed on Thursday in Israeli strikes, according to Gaza authorities. The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages, Israeli tallies show. Gaza's health ministry says Israel's subsequent military assault has killed over 56,000 Palestinians. It has also caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza's entire population and prompted accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the accusations. A previous two month ceasefire ended when Israeli strikes killed more than 400 Palestinians on March 18. Trump earlier this year proposed a US takeover of Gaza, which was condemned globally by rights experts, the UN and Palestinians as a proposal of "ethnic cleansing." ABRAHAM ACCORDS Trump made the comments on the Abraham Accords when asked about US media reporting late on Thursday that he had met Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman at the White House. "It's one of the things we talked about," Trump said. "I think a lot of people are going to be joining the Abraham accords," he added, citing the predicted expansion to the damage faced by Iran from recent U.S. and Israeli strikes. Axios reported that after the meeting with Trump, the Saudi official spoke on the phone with Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of Iran's General Staff of the Armed Forces. Trump's meeting with the Saudi official came ahead of a visit to Washington next week by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Reuters
