by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the United States and Iran were holding direct talks on Tehran’s nuclear program, marking a surprising development after earlier signals from Iranian officials seemed to reject U.S. proposals for such negotiations.
Trump sent an ultimatum to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which Iranian officials initially dismissed. However, Trump’s recent announcement and his preference for diplomacy suggest a shift in Iranian policy, leading to direct negotiations.
“We’re having direct talks with Iran, and they’ve started. It’ll go on Saturday. We have a very big meeting, and we’ll see what can happen,” Trump said during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office.
Trump preferred diplomacy over conflict, emphasizing the importance of reaching an agreement with Iran.
“I think everybody agrees that doing a deal would be preferable to doing the obvious. The obvious is not something that I want to be involved with, or frankly that Israel wants to be involved with if they can avoid it,” he stated, clearly hinting at the undesirable alternative of military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities. “So we’ll see if we can avoid it… It’s getting to be very dangerous territory.”
Trump expressed optimism about the upcoming discussions, suggesting a successful outcome would greatly benefit Iran. “Maybe a deal’s going to be made; that would be great. It would be really great for Iran… We are meeting very importantly on Saturday, at almost the highest level,” he noted.
When asked how his potential deal with Iran would differ from the 2015 JCPOA he previously withdrew, Trump responded: “It’ll be different and maybe a lot stronger.”
Regarding the consequences if the talks do not succeed, Trump warned, “Iran will be in great danger.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, moments before Trump announced that the US is engaging in direct talks with Iran regarding its contentious nuclear program, expressed cautious backing for the initiative.
“We’re both united in the goal that Iran does not get nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu stated alongside the president in the Oval Office. “If it can be done diplomatically, in a comprehensive manner, similar to the approach taken in Libya, I think that would be a good thing.”
Amidst ongoing warfare in Gaza and Lebanon, military strikes in Yemen, a leadership transition in Syria, and skirmishes between Israel and Iran, tensions in the Middle East have intensified. Trump’s threats of military action against Iran have compounded these tensions. Recently, the Pentagon has significantly bolstered its regional military presence, deploying multiple carrier groups and increasing the number of fighter jets, bombers, and support aircraft, all strategically positioned near Iran.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
Israel expanded its military campaign against Hezbollah on Monday, striking more than 70 targets across Lebanon as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to increase pressure on the Iranian-backed terror group following a sharp rise in drone and rocket attacks on northern Israel.
A federal appeals court is weighing whether Kansas City can use its public accommodation ordinance to require Christian counselors to counsel gay married couples despite the counselors’ biblical convictions on marriage and sexuality.
Tens of thousands of evangelical Christians gathered in the Netherlands for one of Europe’s largest multi-day Christian events, with organizers and participants expressing hopes for spiritual revival in the nation and across Europe.
President Donald Trump pushed back Monday against sharp criticism from Republicans and former administration officials over a potential U.S.-Iran agreement, insisting that any final accord must prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon or it will not be signed.
President Donald Trump said Monday that countries involved in negotiations over Iran should be required to join the Abraham Accords, signaling that the White House is seeking to turn a possible Iran agreement into a wider regional realignment that includes normalization with Israel.
Tensions remained high in Serbia’s capital Belgrade on Sunday after at least tens of thousands of people demanded elections and rallied against what they view as the increasingly authoritarian rule of President Aleksandar Vučić, with violence erupting after the protest and more than 20 people arrested.
Investigations were ongoing Sunday into the killing of three senior Kuki-Thadou Christian church leaders by unidentified gunmen in India’s northeastern Manipur State, Christian investigators told Worthy News.