US President Donald Trump has threatened to destroy Iran’s economy or “wipe out” the regime if Tehran doesn’t strike a deal to end the war.
Issuing the stark warning on Iran over the weekend, Mr Trump said that his options were “wiping out” Iran, letting it “rot” economically under naval blockade, or striking a deal.
“My question is, if and when do I blow the entire nation up? They better behave,” he remarked.
“If and when do I blow the entire nation up?” remarked Trump in comments made to a Fox News reporter on Sunday, as he toyed with the scenario of Iran’s government not striking a deal.
However, Trump appeared to be leaving the door open to negotiations, telling Fox that he was in “deciding mode” over what to do next. He has said that the US could resume major military action against Iran, while also considering diplomacy.
At the same time, he has questioned whether any agreement with Tehran would be a reliable one.
The American leader has said that his nuclear objective remains that Iran must not have a nuclear weapon, saying on September 18th: “Iran will not have a nuclear weapon” and arguing that this was worth accepting spiralling gas prices.
He reportedly told the reporter that Iran’s government “better behave,” and that the choices were: “Wipe it out, let it rot with the economy, to make a deal.”
Trump has faced low polling on the war itself, with the majority of Americans saying that he lacks a plan to end the war. A poll by Fox News over the weekend found that 71 per cent of Americans believe the US leader lacks a plan to end the war amid escalating conflicts between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia.
Trump has stressed that he did not regret the decision to go to war with Iran, telling reporters that if he had to do it again, he would do it “exactly as I did.”
Earlier this week, the US president threatened to “annihilate” the Iranian regime, saying that he faces a major decision on how to proceed with the war.
The president has indicated that he could potentially meet Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian during the UN General Assembly this week.
Back on February 28th, President Trump announced “major combat operations” against Iran, with huge joint US-Israeli strikes targeting military, government and infrastructure sites. In June, delegations from the US and Iran entered into negotiations aimed at a war-ending deal based on a memorandum of understanding signed by both countries.
Those talks broke down as both the US and Iran continued to exchange strokes – with Trump stating in August that the US would launch “a crushing economic operation” to force Tehran into submission.
On Sunday night, Iran warned that any new US attack would lead it tro expand the geographic scope of the conflict.
It warned that the “geography of the war”, which has so far lasted nearly seven months, would expand in response to any US assault.
A spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened to respond with unspecified new weapons.
It said it “has prepared itself for a long-term war” and is “more prepared than ever before,” Iran’s Mehr News reported on Sunday.
“The war continues, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has prepared itself for a long term war,” it said. “It was ready before, and now it is even more prepared for a long-term war.”
It came as embassies across the Middle East issued security alerts on Sunday – advising US nationals to exercise caution and be prepared for travel disruptions due to the “potential for unforeseen escalation” in the region.