Trump rules out more time for Iran deal talks

WASHINGTON

U.S. President Donald Trump has ruled out extending a 60-day negotiating framework with Iran that expired on Aug. 17 without a final agreement.

Asked at the White House whether the framework would be extended, Trump replied, “No.”

“They want to make a deal, but they’re not going to make the kind of a deal that I feel is necessary,” he said when asked whether a final agreement remained possible.

Trump said Washington’s central condition was that Tehran must not acquire a nuclear weapon.

“Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and they won’t have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

The memorandum agreed in June established a 60-day period for negotiations and allowed an extension by mutual consent.

Trump also addressed Oman after saying earlier that the United States could strike the country if it obstructed Washington over the Strait of Hormuz.

Asked whether his patience with Oman had run out, Trump said: “No. I don’t think they behaved very well, but we’d handle them very easily, just like we do others.”

He also backed the idea of declaring the Strait of Hormuz U.S. territory.

“We control it with the blockade, and I like the idea of declaring it a territory,” Trump said, adding that the United States had “total control” over the waterway. He offered no details on how such a designation could be made.