Trump: Iran 'very threatening' to US

By Umar Farooq

WASHINGTON (AA) - President Donald Trump on Thursday said Tehran was acting in a threatening manner toward the U.S., however, he added he was open to meeting with his Iranian counterpart.

"We have information that you don’t want to know about, they were very threatening," Trump said to reporters at the White House. "We have to have security for this country and for a lot of other places."

In response to a question of whether there was a risk of military confrontation between the U.S. and Iran, Trump said it is "always" a possibility.

National Security Advisor John Bolton announced Sunday the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and a bomber task force were being deployed to the Central Command region to send "a clear and unmistakable message" to Tehran.

The move was made due to an alleged threat from Iran, however neither Trump, Bolton nor Secretary of State Mike Pompeo never mentioned specifics about the threat.

"We have one of the most powerful ships in the world, it’s loaded up and we don't want to have to do anything," Trump said.

Despite tensions between the two countries, the president said he was open to talking with his Iranian counterpart, saying "I'd like to see them call me."

"We can make a deal a fair deal. We just don't want them to have nuclear weapons," he said. "We're open to talk to them."

- China trade talks

Trump also said he received "a beautiful letter" from Chinese President Xi Xinping amid a tense point in trade talks between the two countries.

U.S. and Chinese officials are scheduled to meet later Thursday for talks, just days after Trump had threatened to increase tariffs on Beijing if it did not agree to a new trade deal.

"We were getting very close to a deal, then they started renegotiating a deal," Trump said Thursday.

"We have two great alternatives, our country is doing fantastically well," he added.