Tuesday, 02 January 2024 12:17 GMT

She's Wrong: Trump Rejects Intel Chief Tulsi Gabbard's Assessment On Iran Nuclear Threat


(MENAFN- AsiaNet News)

US President Donald Trump has rejected an intelligence assessment on Iran's nuclear program, contradicting his own director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard. Trump stated that Gabbard was "wrong" in her assessment that Iran has not made a decision to build a nuclear weapon.

This disagreement comes amidst rising tensions in the Middle East, with Iran facing pressure from the US and its allies over its expanding nuclear activities. Trump has expressed skepticism about Iran's claims of needing civilian-use nuclear power, given its vast oil reserves. "They're sitting on top of one of the largest piles of oil in the world. I just don't know why they'd need that for civilian purposes," he said.

In addition to his comments on Iran, Trump also discussed NATO's proposed defense spending target. He believes that the US should not be required to meet this target, stating, "I don't think we should, but I think they should," referring to other member nations. Trump criticized Spain for rejecting the pledge, calling it a "very low payer".

Two weeks 'maximum' for Iran decision

Trump also said that Iran had a "maximum" of two weeks to avoid possible US air strikes, indicating he could take a decision before the fortnight deadline he set a day earlier.

Trump added that he was not inclined to stop Israel attacking Iran because it was "winning," and was dismissive of European efforts to mediate an end to the conflict.

"I'm giving them a period of time, and I would say two weeks would be the maximum," Trump told reporters when asked if he could decide to strike Iran before that.

He added that the aim was to "see whether or not people come to their senses."

Trump had said in a statement on Thursday that he would "make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks" because there was a "substantial chance of negotiations" with Iran.

Those comments had been widely seen as opening a two-week window for negotiations to end the war between Israel and Iran, with the European powers rushing to talks with Tehran.

But his latest remarks indicated Trump could still make his decision before that if he feels that there has been no progress towards dismantling Iran's nuclear program.

Trump meanwhile dismissed talks that European powers Britain, France, Germany and the EU had with Iran's foreign minister in Geneva on Friday.

- Europe 'didn't help' -

"They didn't help," he said as he arrived in Morristown, New Jersey, ahead of a fundraising dinner at his nearby golf club.

"Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us. Europe is not going to be able to help in this."

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said after the talks in Geneva that Tehran would not resume negotiations with the United States until Israel stopped its attacks.

But Trump was reluctant.

"It's very hard to make that request right now," Trump said.

"If somebody's winning, it's a little bit harder to do than if somebody's losing, but we're ready, willing and able, and we've been speaking to Iran, and we'll see what happens."

MENAFN21062025007385015968ID1109703302



Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.

Search