President Trump said Thursday that he would decide in the next 10 or 15 days whether to continue diplomacy with Iran or order a military strike.
Why it matters: U.S. and Israeli officials tell Axios a military operation against Iran would likely be a massive, weeks-long campaign — and could begin within days.
What he's saying: "Now we may have to take it a step further or we may not. Maybe we are going to make a deal [with Iran]. You are going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days," Trump said during the Gaza Board of Peace meeting in Washington on Thursday.
- Several hours later Trump told reporters on Air Force One en route to Georgia that 10 days "would be enough time. Ten, fifteen days, pretty much maximum."
The latest: Amid the U.S. threat to launch a military campaign, the Iranian UN Ambassador Amir-Saeid Iravani sent a letter to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and to the members of the UN Security Council warning of an Iranian retaliation.
- "In such circumstances, all bases, facilities, and assets of the hostile force in the region would constitute legitimate targets in the context of Iran's defensive response. The United States would bear full and direct responsibility for any unpredictable and uncontrolled consequences," he wrote.
State of play: Trump convened his top advisers on Wednesday for a meeting on the crisis with Iran.
- Trump was briefed on the nuclear talks held earlier this week in Geneva and the group discussed next steps.
- Trump said on Thursday that the talks went well but Iran has to make "a meaningful deal, otherwise bad things will happen."
What to watch: One U.S. official said the Iranians need to come back to the Trump administration by the end of the month with a package of steps to address the concerns the U.S. presented in Geneva regarding their nuclear program.
- U.S. officials say the arrival of the USS Ford aircraft carrier and its strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean in the coming days will be a key factor in the timing of a possible military campaign against Iran.
