JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday negotiations with Iran were "in the final stages," while warning of further attacks unless Tehran agreed to a peace deal.
Six weeks since President Trump halted Operation Epic Fury for a ceasefire, talks to end the war show little progress.
The Republican president said this week he had come close to ordering further strikes but held back to give diplomacy a chance.
"We are in the final stages of negotiations with Iran. We will see what happens. Either we reach an agreement or we will do some things that are a little cruel, but hopefully it won't happen," he told reporters, launching Al Arabiya from Reuters (21/5).
"Ideally I would like to see a few people killed, not many. We can do it any way," he said.
Speaking later at the US Coast Guard Academy, Trump repeated his "choice between two things" rhetoric - "We may have to hit them very hard, but maybe not" - and reiterated his determination not to allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons.
On the other hand, Tehran accuses President Trump of planning to restart the war, and threatens to retaliate against any attack with an attack outside the Middle East.
"If aggression against Iran is repeated, the promised regional war will spread beyond the region this time," the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said in a statement.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran's main peace negotiator, said in an audio message on social media, "clear and hidden steps by the enemy" showed the United States was preparing a new attack.
Meanwhile, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei later said the US must end "piracy" against Iranian ships, referring to the US blockade of Iranian ports.
"Despite the negative track record of the other party over the past one and a half years, Iran has continued to pursue a path of negotiations with seriousness and good faith, but has strong and justified suspicions about the performance of America," Baghaei explained.
In the latest diplomatic effort, Pakistan's interior minister - who hosted the only round of peace talks so far and has since become a conduit for messages between the two sides - was in Tehran on Wednesday.
Baghaei said Washington and Tehran continue to exchange messages through Pakistani minister mediation.
Iran made a new offer to the United States this week. Tehran's description indicates that the offer largely repeats the terms previously rejected by Trump, including demands to control the Strait of Hormuz, compensation for war damage, lifting sanctions, release of frozen assets, and withdrawal of US forces from the region.
President Trump said he called off this week's strike at the last minute in response to requests from several of Iran's neighbors in the Gulf. A day later, he said he had almost ordered the attack.
President Trump is under pressure to end the war, with soaring energy prices hurting his Republicans ahead of congressional elections in November.
Since the ceasefire, his public comments have vacillated from threats to restart bombing and claims that a deal was close to being reached.
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