A raging Donald Trump has said the shaky peace deal with Iran is “over” as the two countries exchange fire.
Speaking at a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, the 80-year-old president said that he no longer wants to negotiate with Iran because they are “scum” after the Middle East country targeted three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as hitting U.S. military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait.
“They’re sick people, they’re led by sick people. They’re vicious, violent people. If they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over,” Trump said.
Trump added that he will allow his special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner to continue trying to negotiate with Iran, but the president believes it is “just a waste of time dealing with them.”
“They’re liars. We make a deal… Everyone’s agreed, no nuclear weapon. They go outside, talk to the press, they say ‘we never even talked about it.’
“There’s something wrong with them, they’re cuckoo. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over.”
On Tuesday, the U.S. Central Command launched a series of “powerful” strikes against dozens of Iranian targets in what was the largest exchange of fire between the two countries since a “memorandum of understanding” (MOU) for a ceasefire deal was signed in June.
Both countries have frequently accused each other of violating the ceasefire agreed in April. Iran has also said that Israel is violating the peace deal by continuing to attack the Iranian-backed military group Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Trump was heavily criticized for giving far too many concessions to Iran, without much in return, for June’s MOU.
The deal included pledges from Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which it already was before the war broke out, and establishing a $300 billion fund to help Tehran rebuild the country if certain conditions are met.
The MOU also did not formalize any plans to ensure that Iran would end its nuclear program and guarantee that it would not obtain nuclear weapons, only for talks to continue for at least another 60 days.
“They’re bad people, and frankly, I don’t want to waste my time with them,” Trump said in Ankara. “Now, I’ll let our wonderful negotiators keep talking if they want, but I don’t see it. I don’t like these people.”
Elsewhere, NATO chief Mark Rutte, who frequently fawns over the president he calls “daddy,” said it was “absolutely necessary” that the U.S. retaliated to Iran’s attacks as Tehran was “basically violating the ceasefire.”
“I think it is totally crucial that the U.S. forcefully [reacts],” Rutte said with Trump by his side in Ankara.
