WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Donald Trump said he will decide on whether to engage in military action against Iran within the next two weeks.
“Based on the fact that there’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,” Trump said in a statement delivered by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt during Thursday’s press briefing.
The president has repeatedly said that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons, saying the country should have made a deal earlier. He’s also pledged strength through peace, both on the campaign trail and since returning to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
The press secretary noted that talks continue – six rounds thus far of direct and indirect negotiations – with the Islamic Republic.
Leavitt stressed that Iran has the capabilities to create a nuclear weapon that could be made quickly, describing a couple of weeks.
“Iran has all that it needs to achieve a nuclear weapon,” the press secretary told reporters. “All they need is a decision from the supreme leader. Which would, of course, pose an existential threat not just to Israel, but to the United States and to the entire world.”
The statement from the president comes hours after Israel sustained missile attacks from Iran. A major hospital and some residential buildings near Tel Aviv were hit, despite Israel gaining complete air control over the Islamic Republic.
The attacks drew a sharp response from Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who alluded to directly targeting Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“Without question this man should not continue to exist,” said Katz.
The president’s latest statement follows days of similar comments on not committing U.S. military forces to the conflict.
On Wednesday, the president was asked if he would order a strike on Fordow, Iran’s fuel enrichment plant. It is a key site for the country’s nuclear enrichment, requiring the U.S. military to use a B-2 bomber dropping 30,000 pounds of bunker busters on the site, which the Israeli Defense Forces lack.
Staying consistent, the president didn’t rule out a strike.
“I may not do it,” he said. “I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do. I can tell you this, that Iran’s got a lot of trouble, and they want to negotiate. I’m not looking to fight. But if it’s a choice between them fighting or having a nuclear weapon, you have to do what you have to do. And maybe we don’t have to fight.”
“If we get involved in this war, Iran will start hitting U.S. troops and then it becomes unpredictable, which is why I do not think that we should do this,” said Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash.
He’s the ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee in the House of Representatives.
The president stressed that he hadn’t made a final decision on involving U.S. forces in the conflict. Multiple reports say the president has reviewed potential attack plans.
“I have ideas as to what to do,” Trump said. “I like to make a final decision one second before it’s due.”
A second U.S. aircraft carrier, the USS Nimitz, is en route to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet Area of Responsibility. A third carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, has deployed and will transit to the Third Fleet in the Mediterranean.
The president’s decision will likely weigh heavily on him as he travels to The Hague, Netherlands, for next week’s NATO summit. Iran, Russia and NATO defense spending will likely take center stage.
