Washington: US President Donald Trump said on Monday he would be willing to meet Iran's leader without preconditions to discuss how to improve ties after he pulled the United States out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, saying, "If they want to meet, we'll meet."

Asked at a White House news conference whether he was willing to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Trump said: "I'd meet with anybody. I believe in meetings," especially in cases where war is at stake.

Trump's remarks represented a marked softening in rhetoric from a week ago, when he lashed out at Rouhani in a tweet, saying "Never, ever threaten the United States again or you will suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before."