KABUL (Pajhwok): White House says President Donald Trump is interested in seeking financial support from Arab countries for a potential US war with Iran.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said negotiations with Tehran were progressing well, despite Iran rejecting direct talks, Reuters reported.
Responding to a query at a news briefing on whether Arab countries would help fund the war, Leavitt said: “I think it is something the president would be quite interested in asking them to do.”
She said Tehran’s public statements differed from what it conveyed privately to US officials, adding that Iran had shown agreement on some of Washington’s points behind the scenes.
“Despite all of the public posturing you hear from the regime and false reporting, talks are continuing and going well. What is said publicly is, of course, much different than what is being communicated to us privately,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt said any private assurances from Iran would be tested and that the United States would ensure Tehran remained accountable to its commitments.
She warned: “If not, the president has made it very clear the military consequences Iran would face if it does not comply.”
Earlier on Monday, Trump warned that Iran’s energy facilities and oil wells would be targeted if it did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The warning followed Tehran’s rejection of US proposals as “unrealistic” and reports of missile strikes towards Israel.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei said Tehran had not held any direct talks with the United States, noting that only indirect messages regarding Washington’s interest in negotiations had been conveyed through intermediaries.
hz/kk
