Trump Warns Iran's Options Are Either Make A Deal Or Face A Major Military Escalation

• President Trump expressed doubts about Iran being able to arrive at a deal, stating that there is a great amount of discord among their leaders.
• He stated that there are probably three to four groups among the Iranian leadership, while adding that they may never come around to a negotiated settlement to the war.
• Trump also dismissed the 60-day war powers deadline as unconstitutional, adding that it has never been used before.

President Donald Trump on Friday reportedly warned that Iran has an option to either strike a deal with the U.S. or face a major military escalation.

According to a CNN report, President Trump told reporters at the White House that he was not satisfied with a new offer from Iran to end the war.

“There are options. Do we want to go and just blast the hell out of them and finish them forever? Or do we want to try and make a deal. That’s the options,” he said.

He also confirmed that he had received a briefing from the U.S. Central Command on Thursday regarding the military options currently available.

Trump Says There Is Discord Among Iranian Leaders

President Trump expressed doubts about Iran being able to arrive at a deal, stating that there is a great amount of discord among their leaders.

“They’ve made strides, but I’m not sure if they ever get there,” he said, adding that while Iran wants to make a deal, he is not satisfied with it.

Trump stated that there are probably three to four groups among the Iranian leadership, while adding that they may never come around to a negotiated settlement to the war. He also shot down concerns of Iran building a nuclear bomb.

“If they were ever allowed to have a nuclear weapon, you would have problems the likes of which the world has never seen before, and it’s not going to happen,” he said.

Trump also dismissed the 60-day war powers deadline as unconstitutional, adding that it has never been used before.

Iran Delivers New Proposal To US

Meanwhile, Iran delivered a new proposal to the U.S. via Pakistan on Friday, according to a report by the country’s state-run news agency, IRNA.

The agency also added that Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei reiterated that ending the ongoing war and establishing peace remain Iran’s main objectives in its negotiations with the U.S.

Baqaei also stated in a post on X on Friday that the U.S. attacks on Iran were not an act of self-defense, but aggression.

“'Self-defense' against what? Was there any 'armed attack' by Iran to justify 'self defense'? Definitely not!” he said.

Crude Oil Prices Edge Lower

Meanwhile, crude oil prices edged lower on Friday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures expiring in June were down nearly 3%, hovering around $102 a barrel. Brent crude futures expiring in June fell 2% to hover around $108 a barrel.

The United States Oil Fund ETF (USO) and the ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil ETF (UCO) were down 3%.

Meanwhile, U.S. equities were mixed in Friday’s midday trade. At the time of writing, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which tracks the S&P 500 index, was up 0.57%; the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ) rose 1.1%; and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) edged lower by 0.06%. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits regarding the S&P 500 ETF was in the ‘bullish’ territory.

Also See: Nasdaq Composite Posts Best Month In 6 Years As AI Boom Powers Tech Surge — Alphabet, Intel Stocks Power The Super Rally

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