Donald Trump vows to ‘Make Iran Great Again’ but tells Tehran they’ll NEVER be allowed nukes ‘because you’d use them’
DONALD Trump claims he wants to “make Iran great again” by helping boost its flagging economy.
The US president insists he is not seeking war with Tehran and hinted he was ready to calm tensions using his legendary deal making skills.
While he said he will impose more sanctions aimed at stopping the Islamic Republic obtaining nukes, he left the door open for talks aimed at reaching a settlement.
“They cannot have a nuclear weapon. They’d use it. And they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters.
“When they agree to that, they’re going to have a wealthy country. They’re going to be so happy, and I’m going to be their best friend. I hope that happens.”
Mr Trump said military action was “always on the table” but indicated he was open to defuse the situation by reaching a deal.
“We will call it ‘let’s make Iran great again’,” he said.
He later wrote on Twitter from Camp David: “We are putting major additional Sanctions on Iran on Monday.
“I look forward to the day that Sanctions come off Iran, and they become a productive and prosperous nation again.”
At the weekend, the President said believes an all-out war with Iran would cause “obliteration like never before” but insists he’s “not looking for one”.
Tensions are at breaking point after the US president aborted a military strike in retaliation for Iran’s downing of an unmanned US drone, as he feared it could have killed 150 Iranians.
“I’m not looking for war, and if there is, it’ll be obliteration like you’ve never seen before. But I’m not looking to do that,” Trump told NBC’s Meet the Press programme ,
“I think they want to negotiate. And I think they want to make a deal. And my deal is nuclear. Look, they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon,” he added
“I don’t think they like the position they’re in. Their economy is, is absolutely broken.”
What does the Iran nuclear deal entail?
The Iran nuclear deal was an agreement between the Islamic Republic and a group of world powers aimed at scrapping the Middle Eastern country’s nuclear weapons programme.
The deal saw Iran agree to eliminate its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium by 98 per cent.
Enriched uranium is a critical component for making nuclear weapons and in nuclear power stations and by curbing the amount Iran produce is a way to curb the number of weapons produced.
As part of the agreement, Iran also agreed to only enrich their uranium up to 3.67 per cent over the next 15 years and they agreed to reduce their gas centrifuges for 13 years.
Gas centrifuges are used to separate different types of uranium which allows specific types to then be used to manufacture nuclear weapons or generators.
Iranian nuclear facilities were limited to a single facility with only first-generation centrifuges for 10 years and other nuclear facilities had to be converted into other use.
In addition, they were barred from building any more heavy-water faculties – a type of nuclear reactor which uses heavy water (deuterium oxide) as a coolant to maintain temperatures in the reactor.
Also under the agreement, the International Atomic Energy Agency was granted regular access to all Iranian nuclear facilities to ensure Iran maintains the deal.
Relations in the region began to worsen significantly when Trump pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six powers and reimposed sanctions on the country.
The sanctions had been lifted under the pact in return for Tehran curbing its controversial nuclear programme.
Iran has said it would respond firmly to any threat against it and warned earlier today of the risks of a military confrontation.
Iranian President Hassan has already accused the Americans of stoking tensions in the Gulf through what Iran has called the violation of its airspace by the US military drone.
Washington said the aircraft was targeted in international air space in “an unprovoked attack”.
US secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he will now visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates while National Security Adviser John Bolton visits Israel for talks on the crisis.
“We’ll be talking with them about how to make sure that we are all strategically aligned and how we can build out a global coalition on Iran”, Pompeo said.
Jeremy Hunt has insisted he is doing what he can amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran.
The Foreign Secretary, who is battling to become the next prime minister, said he is speaking to counterparts “regularly” about the Iran crisis which he called “extremely serious”.
Foreign Office minister Andrew Murrison is holding talks with the Tehran government today and is expected to call for “urgent de-escalation”.
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Earlier it was reported the US launched a cyber-strike on Iranian weapons systems after President Trump pulled out of an air attack on the hardline country.
The computer attack is said to have disabled the hi-tech operating systems controlling rocket and missile launchers in the Islamic Republic.
Insiders say the move was in retaliation for the shooting down of a US drone as well as attacks on oil tankers that the US has blamed Iran for.