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US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) said he would "cancel meetings" as part of the technical talks with Iran if Tehran does not allow International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear inspections in the Islamic Republic, asserting that Washington has secured assurances on inspection access as part of ongoing talks.
Speaking to reporters upon his arrival in Pennsylvania, where he visited the Mack Trucks facility in Lehigh County, Trump dismissed concerns over Iran's stance on inspections. Responding to questions on UN nuclear watchdog inspectors would be deployed under the agreement, Trump insisted that Iran had already agreed in principle. "They're wrong. They're wrong. They're wrong. They know they're wrong. They told us inside and we have it down 100 per cent for inspections. And if they were right, I'd cancel the meetings right now," Trump said. When asked about the timeline for inspections, he added, "At the appropriate time. There's no rush, but they'll be on the ground at the appropriate time." He further claimed that negotiations with Iran were progressing and suggested that Tehran's position had been significantly weakened. "We are doing very well with Iran. They've been decimated, and we're making a deal with them, and we'll see how that all goes," he said. Trump also referred to developments related to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, claiming major disruption in oil movement after the conclusion of the initial rounds of technical talks between the two sides that took place in Switzerland as part of the 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at ending the hostilities in the region. "As you probably heard yesterday, we had 19 barrels of oil come off, and that's the biggest in the history of the Strait of Hormuz," he said. Reiterating his administration's position on Iran's nuclear ambitions, Trump said, "And the big thing is Iran will not have a nuclear weapon." Trump also claimed that Iran was in a weakened strategic position, citing its military capabilities. "We have Iran in a position that nobody's ever had. This should have been done for 47 years by other presidents. And we have Iran in a position where their military has been totally wiped out. Their leadership has been wiped out. Their radar has been wiped out," he said. Trump added that any potential economic arrangements would take humanitarian needs inside Iran into account. "Money that will be taken out of Iran is going to go to our farmers to give corn, soybeans, wheat to Iran because they have a hunger problem. They have a food problem. They have a medicine problem," he said. The remarks come amid ongoing diplomatic discussions between Washington and Tehran over nuclear inspections, sanctions relief and regional security arrangements following talks in Switzerland. (ANI)
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