Trump suggests limited strikes to push Iran to nuclear deal

Amna Nawaz:

Today, President Trump suggested he was considering a limited strike on Iran, while Iran's foreign minister said he was drafting a new diplomatic proposal as part of ongoing negotiations. The public statements come as the United States continues to deploy a large number of military assets in the region.

Nick Schifrin has been following this all and joins us now.

So, Nick, what did we hear from the president today?

Nick Schifrin:

Well, as you said, Amna, the president suggested that he was considering a limited strike on Iran in order to try and convince Iran to accept a diplomatic deal.

That seems to confirm a report in The Wall Street Journal, but he said it with a smile in a chaotic room. So let's take a listen to the question, to the answer, and also what he said about the nature of the deal this afternoon.

Question:

Mr. President, are you considering a limited military strike to pressure Iran into a deal?

Woman:

Thank you, press. Thank you, press.

(Crosstalk)

Question:

Are you considering a limited strike, sir?

President Donald Trump:

I guess I can say I am considering that.

They better negotiate a fair deal.

Nick Schifrin:

President Trump also said today that Iran's crackdown of an unprecedented number of protests last month killed 32,000 people. That's a number I have heard some activists use, but the U.S. government has never used before today.

But, remember, Amna, the crackdown was what started this round of threats. President Trump warned that, if Iran killed protesters, he would respond. Iran crossed that red line by the thousands. But other than Starlinks, the president never enforced his red line.

Amna Nawaz:

Nick, is it fair to say, with the president's statement the number of military assets in the region, the threat, military threat, has gone up in the last few days?

Nick Schifrin:

Yes, I mean, this is one of the largest deployments to the Middle East in decades.

Let's take a look at the map, and I want to point out a few things. You see the green triangles there. Those are the dozens of bases that the U.S. has access to that Iran is threatening to target, the red triangles, right, two carrier strike groups, one south of Iran, the other entering the Mediterranean sailing east.

And all of those yellow dots, more than a dozen ships, those can fire missiles toward Iran, but also contribute to air defense. In addition to all of that, there are dozens of additional fighter jets that have been deployed to the region. And officials tell me all of this gives the president a range of options for military strikes.

Amna Nawaz:

What do we know about what Iran's saying how they would respond to even a limited strike?

Nick Schifrin:

So a regional official told me and other reporters last night that Iran would respond to even a limited strike by walking away from the negotiations.

So the idea of a limited strike producing a better result in negotiations, he said, was not true. And that was echoed by every expert I talked to, and these experts have a range of opinions.

It was also echoed by Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, speaking on MS NOW's "Morning Joe."

Abbas Araghchi, Iranian Foreign Minister (through interpreter):

Military option would only complicate this, would only bring about disastrous consequences, not only for us, perhaps for the whole region. If you talk with the Iranian people with the language of respect, we respond with the same language. But if they talk to us with the language of force, we will reciprocate with the same language.

Nick Schifrin:

Araghchi also said that Iran would finalize a new offer to the U.S. for diplomatic talks in the next two to three days. But he said that the U.S. had not asked Iran to freeze enrichment or to go down to zero enrichment, which is the administration's public position.

Abbas Araghchi:

What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran's nuclear program, including enrichment, is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever.

Nick Schifrin:

A White House official tells me tonight -- quote -- "Iran cannot have nuclear weapons or the capacity to build them and they cannot enrich uranium."

That seems to me, Amna, a declarative statement against Araghchi's claim. And, again, all experts saying right now that it's pointing to some kind of U.S. military strike in the near future.

Amna Nawaz:

All right, Nick Schifrin, thank you very much.

Nick Schifrin:

Thank you.