President Donald Trump said Thursday that a peace deal with Iran could be signed as early as this weekend in Europe, comments that mark the latest turn toward diplomacy after days of military strikes.
Vice President JD Vance would attend the signing on behalf of the administration if a deal is reached, Trump said in remarks at the White House. He also praised special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, who have worked with Vance to negotiate with Tehran.
“I won’t be able to be there, but JD will be there, vice president, and some of the people,” Trump said in the Oval Office while announcing an unrelated proclamation. “Steve Witkoff did a great job, Jared.”
The possible memorandum of understanding comes after Trump canceled a series of strikes on Iran scheduled for Thursday evening and threatened to seize Kharg Island.
“They got hit very hard recently, as you know, and I don’t like to have to do things that way, but I felt it was necessary,” Trump said.
The military escalation had been threatening a fragile ceasefire between the two nations and came after Trump accused Iran of stringing the United States along in negotiations.
Trump projected confidence that a deal could come “soon, maybe this weekend,” when he was questioned about the multiple reports over the past three months that a peace deal to end the war had been reached, only for it to then fall apart.
When asked about why this pause in fighting was different, the president pointed to recent strikes that the U.S. launched after Iranian forces shot down an Army helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz.
“They’ve taken a pounding,” Trump said. “They’ve taken a pounding like very few people could take, and they want to make the deal a lot more than I do.”
He also claimed that Iran’s supreme leader is on board with a deal. But Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency cited an unnamed source who said Tehran has not agreed to text for a memorandum with the U.S.
Any deal to end the war must include Iran not obtaining a nuclear weapon, the president said.
“They will not have a nuclear weapon,” he told reporters. “They’ve agreed to that.”
Yet the president also tacitly acknowledged the uncertainty of the deal when asked further questions about Iran’s nuclear future.
“It’s a very strong memorandum of understanding that is a little conceptual, but it’s something that’s going to get done,” he said.
TRUMP DOUBTS VOTERS HAVE ‘STOMACH’ FOR US TAKING OVER IRAN OIL FIELDS
After more than 100 days of the war, Trump predicted that gas prices would fall as the conflict winds down. He has previously brushed off concerns about the inflation caused by the spike in energy costs, but Democrats have been quick to seize on it as an issue for the midterm elections.
“It’s a great deal for the United States and for the Middle East, and I think ultimately great for Iran, because they’ll be able to build up their country,” Trump said of a possible deal.