UPDATE - Trump says 'larger number of ships' heading toward Iran, signals hope for deal

ADDS REMARKS BY US PRESIDENT, DETAILS

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Donald Trump on Friday said a sizable US naval force is heading toward Iran, signaling hope for a deal with Tehran over its nuclear program but also leaving options open.

"We have a large Armada, flotilla ... heading toward Iran right now, even larger than what we had in Venezuela," Trump said at the White House.

He reiterated that the US is now sending "actually, a larger number of ships" to Iran.

"Hopefully, we'll make a deal. If we do make a deal, that's good. If we don't make a deal. We'll see what happens," he said, adding that Iran wants to make a deal.

Asked if he has given Iran any kind of deadline to make a deal, Trump said: "Only, they know for sure."

He said he communicated with them. "They were going to hang 837 people. And I told them, 'if you do it, you're going to pay a price like nobody's ever paid before.' And they pulled back. I appreciated that ...So we'll see what happens. I can say this, they do want to make a deal," he said.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday that diplomatic efforts with the US can only succeed if Washington abandons threats and war-provoking actions in the region, stressing that dialogue requires goodwill and mutual trust.

Iranian officials have warned that any US attack would draw a “swift and comprehensive” response, while reiterating that Tehran remains open to talks only under what it describes as “fair, balanced and noncoercive terms.”