Trump says he's willing to talk to Iran without preconditions
Asked at a White House news conference if he would be prepared to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, US president says 'I'd meet with anybody', adding he's 'ready to meet any time that they want to'; overture comes days after he posted a fiery tweet warning Rouhani of dire consequences if he threatened the US.
Asked at a White House news conference whether he was willing to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Trump said: "I'd meet with anybody. I believe in meetings," especially in cases where war is at stake.
On July 22, Trump said in a tweet directed at Rouhani: "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before. We are no longer a country that will stand for your demented words of violence & death. Be cautious!"
A few hours earlier, Rouhani had addressed Trump in a speech, saying that hostile US policies could lead to "the mother of all wars".
On Monday, Trump, speaking at a news conference with visiting Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte, said: "I would certainly meet with Iran if they wanted to meet. I don't know that they're ready yet. I ended the Iran deal. It was a ridiculous deal. I do believe that they will probably end up wanting to meet and I'm ready to meet any time that they want to."
Trump said he had "no preconditions" for a meeting with the Iranians, adding: "If they want to meet, I'll meet."
"If we could work something out that's meaningful, not the waste of paper that the other deal was, I would certainly be willing to meet," he added, noting that it would be good for the United States, Iran and the world.
"No preconditions, no. If they want to meet, I'll meet anytime they want, anytime they want," he said. "Good for the country, good for them, good for us and good for the world. No preconditions. If they want to meet, I'll meet," Trump said.
In May, Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 international agreement designed to deny Tehran the ability to build nuclear agreements.
Since then Iran and other signatories have been working to find a way to salvage the agreement, even as the United States has begun reimposing some sanctions on Iran.
World powers and Iran have been working on an economic package to compensate for US sanctions that begin taking effect in August.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNBC on Monday that he was onboard with the president's invitation, saying Trump "wants to meet with folks to solve problems."
But he appeared to add several qualifications: "If the Iranians demonstrate a commitment to make fundamental changes in how they treat their own people, reduce their maligned behavior, can agree that it's worthwhile to enter in a nuclear agreement that actually prevents proliferation, then the president said he's prepared to sit down and have a conversation with him."
Early reaction on Capitol Hill was mixed, with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., who is often critical of Trump, telling reporters: "I actually think that's a good idea."
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., characterized the overture as "fine," but only "as long as they are willing to talk about being a normal country in the future."
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., a frequent Trump critic, was more skeptical, calling it "another recipe for bad outcomes."
"It's the same as North Korea," he said. "No preconditions, no preparation. And what do we have? We have Kim Jong Un was elevated from an international pariah to someone who seems like a legitimate statesman."
Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report.
