Trump: We are ready to reach a real agreement with Iran

Two days after the U.S. President issued a stern warning about Iran's behaviors in a tweet, Donald Trump still considers negotiations for a non-nuclear agreement with Iran possible. In remarks to a gathering of U.S. veterans, Mr. Trump stated, "We will see what happens, but we are ready to reach a real agreement. Not what was formed in the previous administration, which was a disaster." The President, who has been a serious critic of the nuclear agreement with Iran since his election campaign and has repeatedly referred to it as the worst possible deal, exited the JCPOA on May 8 this year, after which the process of reinstating U.S. sanctions against the Islamic Republic began. The first round of U.S. sanctions against Iran will be implemented in less than two weeks, and by the time all unilateral U.S. sanctions against the Islamic Republic return on November 4 this year, the U.S. is determined to bring Iran's oil exports to zero; a topic emphasized during the U.S. Secretary of State's meeting with the Iranian-American community. Iran, through its Foreign Ministry spokesperson, has stated that if the U.S. seeks to stop Iran's oil exports, it will face "retaliation" from Iran. This issue has recently been referenced by Hassan Rouhani, either implicitly or explicitly. He stated on Sunday that the U.S. should not play with the lion's tail. Mr. Rouhani also added that "the group currently in power in the U.S., if we yield to them and take a step back, will plunder all the nation's interests, and in this situation, we will not be afraid and will stand against them until the last drop of our blood." He reminded that "speaking, negotiating, and talking to the U.S. means nothing but surrender"; reiterating the position of the Supreme Leader, who had stated a day earlier that "the idea of solving the country's problems through negotiation or relations with the U.S. is a clear mistake." Mr. Rouhani's remarks on Sunday, however, led to a sharp response from Donald Trump, who tweeted on Sunday night Washington time warning Hassan Rouhani that threatening the U.S. would have bad consequences for Iran. On Monday night, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, referring to Mr. Trump's tweet, warned that the U.S. would no longer tolerate "violence and terror" from Iran and threats against the United States.