Trump warns he’s considering limited strikes as Iranian diplomat says proposed deal is imminent

WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� President Donald Trump warned on Friday that even as the country鈥檚 top diplomat said Tehran expects to have a proposed deal ready in the next few days following .

In response to a reporter’s question on whether the U.S. could take limited military action as , Trump said, 鈥淚 guess I can say I am considering that.鈥� A few hours later, he told reporters that Iran 鈥渂etter negotiate a fair deal.鈥�

Earlier Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a TV interview that his country was planning to finalize a draft deal in 鈥渢he next two to three days鈥� to send to Washington.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it takes long, perhaps, in a matter of a week or so, we can start real, serious negotiations on the text and come to a conclusion,鈥� Araghchi said on MSNOW’s 鈥淢orning Joe鈥� show.

The tensions between the longtime adversaries have ramped up as the Trump administration pushes for concessions from Iran and has built up the largest in decades, with more warships and aircraft on the way.

On Friday, the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group passed through the Strait of Gibraltar and entered the Mediterranean Sea after being sent by Trump from the Caribbean, according to images of the ship by maritime photographers posted to social media.

Both Iran and the U.S. have signaled that they are prepared for war if talks on Tehran鈥檚 nuclear program fizzle out. 鈥淲e are prepared for diplomacy, and we are prepared for negotiation as much as we are prepared for war,鈥� Araghchi said Friday.

Ali Vaez, an Iran expert at the International Crisis Group, said Iran 鈥渨ould treat any kinetic action as an existential threat.鈥�

Vaez said he doesn鈥檛 think Iran鈥檚 leaders are bluffing when they say they would retaliate, while they likely believe they could maintain their hold on power despite any U.S. airstrikes.

What Iran and the US are negotiating

Trump said a day earlier that he believes 10 to 15 days is 鈥渆nough time鈥� for Iran to reach a deal following , including this week in Geneva, that made little visible progress. But the talks have been deadlocked for years after Trump鈥檚 to unilaterally withdraw the U.S. from Iran鈥檚 2015 . Since then, Iran has refused to discuss wider U.S. and Israeli demands that it scale back its missile program and sever ties to armed groups.

Araghchi also said Friday that his American counterparts have not asked for zero as part of the latest round of talks, which is not what U.S. officials have said publicly.

“What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran鈥檚 nuclear program, including enrichment, is peaceful and will remain peaceful forever,” he said.

He added that in return, Iran will implement some confidence-building measures in exchange for relief on .

In response to Araghchi鈥檚 claim, a White House official said Trump has been clear that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons or the capacity to build them and that it cannot enrich uranium. The official wasn鈥檛 authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Tehran has long insisted that any negotiations should only focus on its nuclear program and that it hasn鈥檛 been enriching uranium since U.S. and Israeli . Trump said at the time that the strikes had 鈥渙bliterated鈥� Iran鈥檚 nuclear sites, but the exact damage is unknown as .

Although Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, the U.S. and others suspect it is aimed at eventually developing weapons.

What Congress has to say

Trump’s comments have faced pushback from some lawmakers who say the president should get Congress’ approval before any strike.

Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia said Friday that he has filed a war powers resolution that would require that step. Though it has no chance of becoming law 鈥� in part because Trump himself would have to sign it 鈥� some bipartisan consensus has arisen recently among senators who forced votes on previous resolutions on military action in Venezuela.

, but they were successful in showing how lawmakers are troubled by some of Trump鈥檚 aggressive foreign policy maneuvers.

鈥淚f some of my colleagues support war, then they should have the guts to vote for the war, and to be held accountable by their constituents, rather than hiding under their desks,鈥� Kaine said in a statement.

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Amiri reported from New York. Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price, Ben Finley, Stephen Groves and Konstantin Toropin in Washington and Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.