Trump says if deal is reached, US will take Iran's enriched uranium

HAMILTON, Canada

President Donald Trump said Monday that if the US reaches a deal with Iran, the US will take the country's enriched uranium.

Asked by reporters how the US will get Iran’s enriched uranium, a years-long bone of contention between the two, he said: "It's very easy."

"If we have a deal with them, we're going down, and we'll take it ourselves," he added.

Saying that the latest round of talks between Washington and Tehran happened late Sunday – talks denied by Iran – Trump told reporters before leaving for a trip to the southern US: "They want very much to make a deal. We'd like to make a deal too."

"We're going to get together today by probably phone," he said.

Claiming that it is "very hard" for Iranian officials to get out of the country, Trump also said US and Iranian officials will "at some point, very, very soon meet" in person.

On his announcement earlier today of a five-day pause in attacks on Iranian energy facilities, the US president said: "We'll see how that goes, and if it goes well, we're going to end up with settling this. Otherwise, we just keep bombing our little hearts out."

Asked about Israel's response to reported talks with Iran, Trump said: "I think they'll be very happy."

He argued that a deal with Iran would be a "long-term peace" for Israel but also for the region, adding that he "can't guarantee" the deal.

Trump also claimed that the Iranian side called US officials first and said: "It's got to be a good deal, and there's got to be no more wars, no more nuclear weapons."

"We have had very, very strong talks. We'll see where they lead," he noted, announcing that Washington and Tehran agreed on "major points."

He said they agreed on 15 points, with the nuclear weapon being "number one, two, and three" on the list.

"They will never have a nuclear weapon. They've agreed to that," he said.

Arguing that he wants to see "peace in the Middle East," Trump also said the US wants "the nuclear dust."

"And I think we're going to get that," he added.

When asked about the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, he claimed that it would be "opened very soon," if the deal "works."

He also claimed that the strait would be "jointly controlled" by the US and Iran.

Emphasizing that there will be a "very serious form of regime change" in Iran, Trump said the change already began since "everybody's been killed" from the previous leadership.

"They're really starting off. There's automatically a regime change, but we're dealing with some people that I find to be very reasonable, very solid," he said.

Pointing to the US action on Venezuela, Trump said: "Look at Venezuela, how well that's working."

"We are doing so well in Venezuela with oil, and with the relationship between the president-elect and us, maybe we find somebody like that in Iran," he said.