US, Iran officials meet as Trump warns of ‘annihilation’

UNITED NATIONS (AP):

President Donald Trump said US and Iranian officials met yesterday, shortly after threatening in his address to the UN General Assembly that he may “annihilate” the Islamic Republic if a deal isn’t reached soon to end the nearly seven-month war.

Trump confirmed the talks in an exchange with reporters but offered few details about how the discussions transpired or the substance of the exchange.

“It was a very good meeting,” Trump said.

Earlier Tuesday, Trump, in his address to the General Assembly, made the case that he’s shown fortitude while other leaders have equivocated as he defended his decision to start a war with Iran.

But Trump also suggested that he could be at a crossroads in the conflict even as he called on the Islamic Republic to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz and return to the negotiating table to find a settlement to end the conflict.

“I have a big decision to make,” Trump said. “Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world? Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again?”

The president’s comments came in his wide-ranging address to the international body in which he also celebrated this year’s US military operation to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from power, a new agreement to expand the US military presence in Greenland, and pushed back against calls for greater regulation of the artificial intelligence industry.

But, at the heart of the address was a fulsome defence of the war and pushback on the notion that Iran has shown a measure of resilience.

“The terrorist regime is behaving badly, not because they are strong and confident, but because they are weak and desperate,” Trump said.

Trump also accused Iran of stalling to make a deal to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz and negotiate an endgame to the war until after the midterm elections in the United States. He insisted the tactic would have no effect on how he approaches the conflict.

Most of Iran’s delegation walked out of the chamber as Trump railed against the Islamic Republic.

Trump’s speech began a busy day of diplomacy

After his speech, Trump gathered with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen on the sidelines of the General Assembly to sign a new security agreement.

The deal, announced last week, came together after Trump repeatedly threatened to “take over” Greenland, a territory of NATO-ally Denmark, by military force if necessary. Trump said the US will immediately begin the process of developing a larger military presence in Greenland, including “building two very major military bases”.

Under the deal, Greenland remains Denmark’s territory.

Trump also held talks with new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham. The leaders said they discussed migration, the conflict in Iran, the Russia-Ukraine war, and more.

Trump also met with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and will hold a more informal meeting with Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez, according to the White House.

He’s also scheduled to meet with leaders and senior officials from Gulf Cooperation Council nations — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates — to discuss the way ahead with the war in Iran and growing concern about recent Iran-backed rebel attacks on Saudi Arabia. Trump also plans to take part in an event on the Shield of Americas, an initiative Trump launched with Latin American countries earlier this year focused on combatting violent cartels.