By Alexander Cornwell, Parisa Hafezi and Jana Choukeir
TEL AVIV/DUBAI (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said he wanted a “real deal” to end the nuclear problem with Iran and indicated he may send senior American officials to meet with the Islamic Republic as the Israel-Iran air war raged for a fifth straight day.
He made the comments during his midnight departure from Canada, where he attended the Group of Seven nations summit on Monday, according to comments posted by a CBS News reporter on social media platform X.
Trump predicted that Israel would not be slowing its attacks on Iran. “You’re going to find out over the next two days. You’re going to find out. Nobody’s slowed up so far,” the CBS journalist quoted Trump as saying on Air Force One.
He said “I may”, on the prospect of sending U.S. Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff or Vice President JD Vance to meet with Iran.
Washington has said Trump was still aiming for a nuclear deal with Iran, even as the military confrontation unfolds.
World leaders meeting at the Group of Seven summit called for a de-escalation of the worst-ever conflict between the regional foes, saying Iran was a source of instability and must never have a nuclear weapon while affirming Israel’s right to defend itself.
Trump, who left the summit early due to the Middle East situation, said his departure had “nothing to do with” working on a deal between Israel and Iran after French President Emmanuel Macron said the U.S. had initiated a ceasefire proposal.
“Wrong! He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform late on Monday.
Israel launched its air war with a surprise attack that has killed nearly the entire top echelon of Iran’s military commanders and its leading nuclear scientists. It says it now has control of Iranian airspace and intends to escalate the campaign in the coming days.
Trump has consistently said the Israeli assault could end quickly if Iran agreed to U.S. demands that it accept strict curbs on its nuclear programme.
“Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” Trump said on Monday.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday that a “more powerful” new wave of missiles was recently launched towards Israel, the state news agency reported. A senior Iranian army commander said a new wave of drones would hit Israel.
Three people were killed and four injured in Iran’s central city of Kashan in an Israeli attack, Iran’s Nournews reported on Tuesday.
Iranian media also reported explosions and heavy air defence fire in Tehran early on Tuesday, with smoke rising in the city’s east after an explosion of suspected Israeli projectiles. Air defences were activated also in Natanz, home to key nuclear installations 320 km (200 miles) away, the Asriran news website reported.
Khorramabad city MP Reza Sepahvand told the Iranian labour news agency that most incidents happening in Iran are due to “infiltrators” rather than direct action from Israel, adding that 21 people were killed in the western province of Lorestan.
Israel’s military said on Tuesday that it killed Iran’s wartime chief of staff. Israel also said it carried out extensive strikes on Iranian military targets including weapons storage sites and missile launchers.
Iranian officials have reported 224 deaths, mostly civilians, while Israel said 24 civilians had been killed. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said nearly 3,000 Israelis had been evacuated due to damage from Iranian strikes.
Sources told Reuters that Tehran had asked Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia to urge Trump to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to an immediate ceasefire. In return, Iran would show flexibility in nuclear negotiations, according to two Iranian and three regional sources.
CHINESE URGED TO LEAVE ISRAEL
“If President Trump is genuine about diplomacy and interested in stopping this war, next steps are consequential,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on X. “Israel must halt its aggression, and absent a total cessation of military aggression against us, our responses will continue.”
Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons and has pointed to its right to nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, including enrichment, as a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Israel, which is not a party to the NPT, is the only country in the Middle East widely believed to have nuclear weapons. Israel does not deny or confirm that.
Oil prices rallied more than 2% early in Asia on Tuesday after Trump’s evacuation warning, reversing losses on Monday amid reports that Iran was seeking an end to hostilities.
With security concerns growing and Israeli airspace closed because of the war, the Chinese embassy in Israel urged its citizens to leave the country via land border crossings as soon as possible.
The Iran-Israel air war – the biggest battle ever between the two longtime enemies – escalated on Monday with Israel attacking Iran’s uranium enrichment facilities.
Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told the BBC that the Natanz plant sustained extensive damage, likely destroying 15,000 centrifuges, while Iran’s Fordow plant remained largely intact.
Talks between the United States and Iran, hosted by Oman, had been scheduled for June 15 but were scrapped, with Tehran saying it could not negotiate while under attack.
(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Howard Goller, Lincoln Feast and Michael Georgy; Editing by Saad Sayeed, William Maclean)
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