Donald Trump says he's willing to meet with Iran on new nuclear agreement

Show Caption Hide Caption Trump says he would 'certainly meet' with Iran's leader President Donald Trump says he would "certainly meet" with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani if the leader was willing, adding he would do it with "no preconditions." He also said that Iran must "never be allowed" to possess nuclear weapons. (July 30)

WASHINGTON – Defending his foreign policy approach to Russia and others, President Donald Trump said Monday he is willing to meet with Iran's leaders on a new nuclear deal, but it has to be better than the "waste of paper" that made up the previous agreement.

"I would certainly meet with Iran if they wanted to meet; I don't know that they're ready yet, they're having a hard time right now," said Trump, who this year withdrew from the 2015 agreement in which the United States and allies agreed to reduce sanctions on Iran as it gave up the means to make nuclear weapons.

At a brief news conference, Trump said he would hold a summit with Iran with "no preconditions."

Trump made the offer shortly after he threatened, for the second day, to shutter the federal government if Congress does not approve spending for border security. Lawmakers are racing toward a deadline of Sept. 30 to approve a broad funding bill, and the White House is pushing for border money as part of that legislation.

"As far as the border is concerned, and personally, if we don’t get border security, after many, many years of talk within the United States, I would have no problem doing a shutdown," Trump said, repeating a threat he posted on Twitter on Sunday. “We’re the laughingstock of the world."

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The president left lawmakers significant room to meet that demand without providing money for his proposed border wall, which he barely mentioned during his remarks. Trump described the wall, a centerpiece of his campaign, as part of border security but went on to discuss other immigration policies.

Government agencies briefly closed in January as Democrats sought to use a spending measure to renew a program shielding some young immigrants from deportation. This time, Republican leaders in Congress are wary of shutdown threats so close to the midterm elections.

Trump indicated his earlier request of $25 billion for the wall was not a requirement for signing a spending bill.

"I have no red line, unlike President Obama," Trump said, referring to his predecessor's use of the term "red line" in 2012 to threaten Syria against the use of chemical weapons. "I just want great border security."

The president spoke with reporters after a White House meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

Trump said he and his Italian counterpart discussed a "strategic dialogue" on topics such as counterterrorism, trade, reining in Iran and, a subject Trump dwelt on at length, "uncontrolled migration" at their national borders.

"Border security is national security," Trump said. "They are one in the same."

The offer to meet with Iran came a week after Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani exchanged threats over the renewal of economic sanctions on the Tehran regime.

Trump made the offer while defending other high-profile meetings he held, including the much-criticized one this month with Russian President Vladimir Putin – and he said sanctions on Russia will remain in place for the foreseeable future.

Lawmakers and foreign policy analysts criticized Trump for meeting with Putin in secret and not detailing any commitments he may have made with the Russian leader.

Trump took heat for suggesting he accepted Putin's denials despite the U.S. intelligence community's conclusions that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to boost Trump's chances.

An ill-defined meeting with Iran is not likely to yield much, said analysts, some of whom pointed out that Iran is an ally of Russia.

Aaron David Miller, a Middle East negotiator for presidents of both parties, said the suddenness of the offer shows "Trump has no coherent Iran policy" but wants only "to continue to dominate the narrative with his head-exploding whiplash comments" about a high-profile meeting.

"Without a serious approach toward Iran behind it, right now it falls somewhere between a gimmick and a publicity stunt," Miller said.

Blaming "fake news" for criticism of the Putin meeting, Trump said he had "a great meeting" in Helsinki with the Russian president.

Meeting with people, even adversaries, is a good thing, especially if the possibility of war is at stake, Trump said, citing his offer to Iran as well as his session in June in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

“I’ll meet with anybody," Trump said. "I believe in meeting."



