Trump Hopeful After Iran Deal, Reiterates Warning on Nuclear Weapons

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he hopes the United States can develop a “very good relationship” with Iran following a newly reached framework agreement to end the conflict between the two countries, while warning that Tehran would face catastrophic consequences if it seeks to acquire a nuclear weapon.

Speaking to reporters at the G7 summit in France on June 16, Trump spoke of the memorandum of understanding negotiated between Washington and Tehran and described preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon as the agreement’s key aim.

“The only thing that really matters to me, is Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, and it says it loud and clear,” Trump told reporters.

Trump’s remarks came days after U.S. and Iranian negotiators finalized an interim framework intended to halt hostilities and launch a broader diplomatic process to resolve longstanding disputes over Iran’s nuclear activities, sanctions relief, regional security, and maritime access.

The U.S. president said the agreement had already achieved its most important purpose by securing Iran’s commitment not to develop, purchase, or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons.

“They will not develop, purchase, buy, or any other thing. They’re not going to acquire a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. “If they do, all hell will rain down on them, and they’re not going to do that.”

Trump declined to elaborate on what actions the United States might take if Iran violated the agreement.

“I won’t even tell you the consequences, but the consequences are the ultimate consequences,” he said.

Carrot-and-Stick Diplomacy

While warning that Iran would “suffer unbelievable consequences” if it were to pursue nuclear weapons, Trump also struck a conciliatory tone toward Tehran, saying he hopes the framework memorandum could open the door to better ties.

“With that being said, I hope we have a very good relationship,” Trump said.

Trump said he agreed to sign the memorandum only after language was included explicitly barring Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons through any means, not merely by developing them domestically.

“We have our deal done with Iran and it should be successful,” Trump said, predicting that the next stage of talks, during which the details of the broader agreement are to be fleshed out,”will be actually easier.”

Trump also rejected reports suggesting the United States would finance reconstruction or economic projects in Iran as part of the arrangement.

“We are not investing any money in Iran,” he said. “We have no obligation to invest any money in Iran.”

He added that the United States had been preparing to launch additional strikes against Iran before diplomatic progress made further military action unnecessary.

“I didn’t want to attack them last week, but we had no choice,” Trump said. “And we did it twice. Actually, we were doing it a third time. And we were able to not have to do that.”

‘Extending an Open Hand’

The memorandum of understanding has not yet been publicly released, but Trump and members of his administration have described it as the first stage of a broader process that will require extensive negotiations over the coming weeks.

U.S. and Iranian officials are expected to meet in Switzerland on June 19 to begin detailed technical talks under a 60-day negotiating window. Issues to be addressed include the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, verification measures, sanctions relief, and implementation mechanisms.

“There are a lot of very important details to figure out that we’re actually going to sit at the table and discuss together,” U.S. Vice President JD Vance told CNBC in an interview on Monday, adding that the text of the deal may be released to the public this week.

“I think it’s a great day for the American people, because what this deal does fundamentally is two things,” Vance said. “It immediately reopens the Straits of Hormuz. We’re already seeing in the past 24 hours more traffic flow, you see oil prices coming down, but you also have the long-term commitment that Iran will never develop or procure a nuclear weapon.”

Vance echoed Trump’s remarks that the deal offers Iran a great chance at stable economic development with American support, while warning that negative consequences await Tehran if it bucks the offer and chases a nuclear bomb.

“We also are extending an open hand to the Iranians and saying, if you guys negotiate in good faith and you make that long-term commitment not to develop nuclear weapons, then we are going to make sure that your country is successful,” Vance said.

“If, however, you refuse to meet us halfway, then we’re going to continue to apply the pressure that we’ve seen build up. We hope they make the right choice.”