Trump urges Iran to strike nuclear deal, warns of heavier military action

US President Donald Trump has called on Iran to quickly agree to a nuclear deal, warning that a powerful US naval fleet is already moving toward the country and that any future military action would be more devastating than previous attacks.

In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said a massive armada of warships was heading to Iran with “great power, enthusiasm, and purpose” unless Tehran agrees to negotiations. He said the fleet is led by the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, which he described as larger than the one previously deployed to Venezuela.

“Time is running out. It is truly of the essence. As I told Iran once before, make a deal,” Trump wrote. “They didn’t, and there was Operation Midnight Hammer, a major destruction of Iran. The next attack will be far worse.”

An armada refers to a large fleet of warships.

Last June, the United States bombed three nuclear facilities in Iran as part of Israel’s military campaign aimed at dismantling the country’s nuclear enrichment programme. Following the strikes, Trump claimed the Iranian nuclear programme had been “obliterated”, a claim Tehran rejected.

Since the attacks, the location of Iran’s highly enriched uranium has remained unknown.

Trump said he hopes Iran will return to negotiations and agree to a deal that rules out nuclear weapons. “Hopefully Iran will quickly come to the table and negotiate a fair and equitable deal, one that is good for all parties,” he added.

Reports on Monday indicated that US warships had arrived in the Middle East after moving from the Asia Pacific region last week amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran.

The tensions followed an intense government crackdown on protests in Iran, which authorities said had been hijacked.

Iran has warned it would respond strongly if the United States launches another attack.