White House says Iran has 'historic opportunity' / Trump 'interested' in asking Arab countries to help pay war costs
“One way or another, Iran will no longer have the ability to credibly threaten the United States or our allies,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a press conference Monday, where she said Iranian officials with whom Washington is negotiating “seem more reasonable behind the scenes” but again declined to name them, according to CNN, Fox News and Reuters.
The White House spokeswoman claims that talks with Iran are “continuing and going well”, with the “remaining elements” of the regime in Tehran “becoming increasingly eager to end the destruction and come to the negotiating table as soon as they can”.
“These people seem more reasonable behind the scenes, in private, in these conversations, than maybe some of the former leaders who are no longer on planet Earth,” Leavitt added.
Neither President Donald Trump nor his team have yet publicly named the Iranian officials with whom they are discussing the war, although the US leader says negotiations are going well.
In Monday's briefing, Karoline Leavitt warned that any commitments Iran makes will be “tested.”
“This is another historic opportunity for Iran to do the right thing to get rid of its nuclear ambitions and reach an agreement with this president,” the White House spokeswoman said. “Or, again, they will see the dire consequences of the United States Armed Forces,” she added.
Asked if Arab countries would step in to help pay the costs of the war, Leavitt said “the president would be quite interested” in such a possibility.
“It's an idea that I know he has and I think you'll be hearing more from him,” she continued.
White House: The military will act within the law
Pressed for comment on President Trump's threat to take action against Iran's energy facilities and desalination plants, potential actions that CNN writes could violate international law, Karoline Leavitt said the president has made it clear to the Iranians “that their best move is to make a deal.”
“Of course, this administration and the United States military will always act within the law, but in terms of achieving all of the objectives of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump will move forward undeterred and expects the Iranian regime to reach an agreement with the administration,” the White House spokeswoman said.
She said US forces destroyed 11,000 targets in Iran in the operation launched on February 28.
The Pentagon estimates that more than 90 percent of Iran's air and naval forces have been destroyed so far. More than 70 percent of the missile depots were also destroyed, Leavitt said.
Two US officials told Reuters on Monday that thousands of soldiers from the US Army's elite 82nd Airborne Division had begun arriving in the Middle East. The paratroopers, deployed from Fort Bragg Air Force Base in North Carolina, join the thousands of sailors, marines and special operations forces already deployed to the region. Over the weekend, about 2,500 Marines arrived in the Middle East.
