The White House on Friday said President Trump's "ultimate goal" in talks with Iran this weekend is to prevent that country from ever getting a nuclear weapon.
“These will be direct talks with the Iranians, and I want to make that very clear. I also spoke to the president just last night about his goals when it comes to Iran. … His ultimate goal and the ultimate objective is to ensure that Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Friday.
“The president believes in diplomacy, direct talks, talking directly in the same room in order to achieve that goal.”
Leavitt's use of "direct talks" also reflects a battle between the administration and Iran, which has insisted the diplomatic talks this weekend are "indirect."
Trump announced Monday that a meeting would take place in Oman on Saturday regarding Iran’s nuclear program. Iran later Monday said the “high-level talks” would be indirect, while Leavitt on Friday reiterated that they would be direct.
“He’s made it very clear to the Iranians and his national security team will as well that all options are on the table and Iran has a choice to make. You can agree to President Trump’s demand or there will be all hell to pay and that’s how the president feels, he feels very strongly about it,” Leavitt said.
Ahead of the discussion, the U.S. imposed new sanctions on Iran, targeting five entities and one individual based in Iran.
The upcoming talks raised questions from lawmakers in both parties, and the uncertainty over Trump’s endgame has strained relations with Israel, which is wary of the U.S. engagement with Iran.
Trump has previously warned that “Iran is going to be in great danger” if the talks fail.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the full dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program while sitting next to Trump in the Oval Office earlier this week, saying he wants to see the “Libya model” applied to Israel’s top adversary.
