Trump: 50-50 if there is a deal

TT

Updated 19.09 | Published 17.45

US President Donald Trump during a speech in New York on Friday. Photo: Alex Brandon/AP/TT

Are the US and Iran close to a deal or not? The sides have different views on the matter, and Donald Trump says the future of the talks is up in the air.

– I either hit them harder than they have ever met or we get a good deal, he says, giving the chances of a settlement to “50-50”.

The US and Iran are getting closer to each other, at least on the drawing board where plans for a peace agreement are being drawn up. But the distance still looks too great for a peace agreement.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry is almost ready with its proposal for a 14-point agreement, spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei says on Iranian television.

But he is also closing the door to discussing Iran's nuclear program within the agreement.

- At this stage, we will not discuss the details of the nuclear issue, we have prioritized an urgent issue for all of us: ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon.

Threatening Iran

The nuclear program and Iran's ability to develop nuclear weapons are the most important issues for the United States, which President Donald Trump emphasized again on Saturday. The issue of Iran's highly enriched uranium must be included and agreed upon in a "satisfactory manner", according to Trump. Otherwise, he would not even talk about an agreement being approached, he tells CBS News.

- I will just sign an agreement where we get everything we want.

In an interview with the news site Axios, he says that there is "a solid 50-50 percent chance" of an agreement, otherwise he will "blow them to pieces".

– Some would much rather see an agreement, while others would rather see a continuation of the war, he continues, denying that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be worried about an agreement that does not benefit Israel.

Long way to go

His Secretary of State Marco Rubio is pushing for a quick agreement on Saturday, and expressed himself somewhat more diplomatically.

– Some progress has been made, he said according to AFP at a press conference in India, claiming that there could be news “later today, tomorrow or in a couple of days”.

Iran states a slightly longer distance until an agreement.

– Within a reasonable period of 30 to 60 days, the details of these points will be discussed and a final agreement will be determined, says Esmaeil Baqaei according to AFP.