Trump tempers Iran rhetoric, says he’s ready for ‘real deal’ with Teheran

KANSAS CITY, Missouri — President Donald Trump tempered his threatening rhetoric toward Iran on Tuesday, two days after he sent an all-caps warning of future conflict.

Addressing the national convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Trump took credit for pulling the United States out of the Iran nuclear accord, but said his administration stands ready for Iran to come back to the negotiating table.

“We’ll see what happens, but we’re ready to make a real deal, not the deal that was done by the previous administration, which was a disaster,” he said during a speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

While US intelligence agencies maintained that Iran complied with the Barack Obamaera agreement to halt its nuclear program, Trump had complained that the deal didn’t do enough to curb Iran’s influence in the region.

Iran on Monday dismissed Trump’s angry warning that Teheran risked dire consequences “the like of which few throughout history have suffered before” if it made threats against the US.

Trump’s defense secretary, Jim Mattis, declined to directly answer a question about whether he was concerned that Trump’s rhetoric might ratchet up tensions in the region, increasing the chances of miscalculation.

But Mattis, speaking at a news conference in California, listed his many concerns about Iranian actions in the Middle East, including Teheran’s support for Damascus in the Syrian civil war and for Houthi militants fighting the government in Yemen.

“It’s time for Iran to shape up and show responsibility as a responsible nation,” said Mattis.

“So I think the president was making very clear that they’re on the wrong track.”

In Kansas City, Missouri, during the event for military veterans, Trump also highlighted part of his agreement with Kim Jong-un, top leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, last month to transfer some remains of US soldiers killed during the Korean War (1950-53) back to the US as an example of his support for the nation’s veterans as his new VA secretary began his work.

Praising his “good relationship” with Kim, Trump welcomed reports that Pyongyang has started dismantling a facility seen as a testing ground for intercontinental ballistic missiles.

New satellite imagery shows “that North Korea (the DPRK) has begun the process of dismantling a key missile site, and we appreciate that,” he said.

Hitting back at criticism that his June 12 summit with Kim in Singapore has so far yielded few concrete results, Trump suggested his newfound rapport with Kim was bearing fruit.

“We had a fantastic meeting with Chairman Kim and it seems to be going very well,” Trump said.