By Tyler Pager, Adam Rasgon, David E. Sanger, Natan Odenheimer and Jim Tankersley
President Trump said Thursday he will decide whether the United States will attack Iran “within the next two weeks,” adding in a statement released by the White House that “there’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future.”
For days, Mr. Trump had mused publicly about the possibility of bombing Iranian nuclear sites, suggesting that strikes could be imminent, while also insisting that it was not too late for talks. With his comments on Thursday, he appeared to opt for some breathing room to give diplomacy a chance.
Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy to the Middle East, has maintained correspondence with Iranian officials. She declined to provide any further details. Iran pulled out of talks with American officials about a nuclear deal after Israel began attacking Iran last week.
Ms. Leavitt said any nuclear deal with Iran would have to include a ban on enriching uranium and block Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
After days of back-channel discussions, the Europeans, who have been effectively sidelined since the war started, are now trying to exert what limited leverage they have as weapons suppliers or potential peacemakers to try to end the war.
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