US President Donald Trump told Fox News that he sent a letter to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, demanding that they negotiate.
The letter said that Trump prefers to hold negotiations with Iran, but if there is no chance that that negotiations will succeed, then the other alternative is "to do something, because Iran cannot have nuclear weapons."
Trump also said that the US will take the necessary steps to prevent Iran from achieving nuclear capabilities.
"If Iran doesn't negotiate, it will be very ugly for them," he told Fox. "Iran can’t have nukes. Other options are available."
On Thursday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the Trump administration is ramping up sanctions on Iran in an attempt to dismantle its oil industry and bring its struggling economy to the brink.
Speaking at the Economic Club of New York and quoted by CNBC, Bessent emphasized that Washington is enforcing sanctions with “immediate maximum impact.” The ultimate goal, he stated, is to slash Iran’s daily oil exports—currently at 1.5 million barrels—down to a mere fraction.
“We are going to shut down Iran’s oil sector and drone manufacturing capabilities,” Bessent declared, adding that the administration is working to sever Tehran’s access to the global financial network.
“Making Iran broke again will mark the beginning of our updated sanctions policy,” said Bessent, a former global investment manager. “If I were an Iranian, I would get all my money out of the rial now,” he warned, referring to the Iranian currency.