Cynthia Ezegwu
US President Donald Trump on Monday said he was open to striking a peace deal with Iran following joint US-Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear sites earlier this year.
Speaking before Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, Trump said he believed Tehran was now ready for dialogue, describing peace as “a possibility that would benefit everyone.”
“They got it from one side, from the other, and you know it would be great if we could make a peace deal with them,” Trump said. “Would you be happy with that? Wouldn’t it be nice, I think. Because I think they want to.”
The US president added that Washington was ready to engage if Tehran showed willingness. “We’re ready when you are,” he said.
Trump, who has maintained a hardline stance against Iran, defended his 2018 decision to withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal brokered under former president Barack Obama.
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“I terminated the Iran nuclear deal and I was very proud to do it,” Trump said, calling the original agreement “deeply flawed.”
Despite past hostilities, Trump said the US and Israel held no animosity toward the Iranian people. “Even to Iran, whose regime has inflicted so much death on the Middle East, the hand of friendship and cooperation is open,” he said. “Neither the United States nor Israel bears the people of Iran any hostility. We merely want to live in peace.”
The remarks mark one of Trump’s most conciliatory tones toward Tehran since the joint strikes, which heightened regional tensions earlier this year.