US President Donald Trump lauded Monday what he called progress towards ensuring that Tehran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon, a goal to which Iranian officials have repeatedly said they are not aspiring.

“I want to see no nuclear weapon in Iran, and we’re well on our way to making sure that happens,” Trump said after meeting behind closed doors with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada.

“I think Iran basically is at the negotiating table. They want to make a deal, and as soon as I leave here we’re going to be doing something, but I have to leave here. I have, you know, this commitment. I have a lot of commitments,” he added.

It is not clear what Trump was referring to when he said he would be “doing something” later, or if he was referring to doing it later Monday or after the G7 concludes on Tuesday.

Regional tensions have escalated since Friday, when Israel launched coordinated airstrikes on multiple sites across Iran, including military and nuclear facilities, prompting Tehran to launch retaliatory strikes.

Israeli authorities said that at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds injured in Iranian missile attacks since Friday.

Iran, for its part, said that at least 224 people have been killed and over 1,000 others wounded in the Israeli assault.

Anadolu