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Donald Trump, the U.S. President-elect, in an interview with Time magazine, which named him Person of the Year, did not rule out the possibility of an all-out military conflict between the United States and Iran.
On Thursday, December 13, Trump responded to Time’s question about the likelihood of full-scale war with Iran, saying: “Anything is possible. Anything is possible. The situation is very unstable.”
In the interview, Trump added, “You know, when I left [my presidency], we had an Iran that wasn’t very threatening. They didn’t have money. They didn’t give money to Hamas. They didn’t give money to Hezbollah.”
When asked by Time if Elon Musk had met with Iranian officials at his request, Trump responded, “I don’t know if he met with them.”
In response to the report that Musk had indeed met with Iranian officials, Trump said, “I don’t know. He didn’t tell me.”
On November 15, The New York Times reported, citing its sources, that Elon Musk, the famous entrepreneur and senior adviser to Trump, met with Amir Saeed Iravani, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations. However, Iran denied the report.
The U.S. government claims that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) previously attempted to assassinate Donald Trump, an accusation Iran has denied. Trump has previously threatened Iran in this regard.
During his first term in 2020, Trump ordered an airstrike that resulted in the death of Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the IRGC’s Quds Force.
Trump also withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed by Barack Obama, and reimposed U.S. economic sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the agreement.
The JCPOA had limited Iran’s ability to enrich uranium, which could be used to produce fissile material for nuclear weapons.
On the other hand, President Joe Biden has signed a confidential memo that confirms the incoming Trump administration’s preparations to address the growing relationship between Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea. The document mentions Iran’s military and technological cooperation with Russia, including Iran supplying drones and missiles and Russia sending fighter jets to Iran.
Trump recently stated on the social media platform “Truth Social” that Iran and Russia are in a “weak position” and that, due to their current situation, they were unable to fully support Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.
With the beginning of Trump’s second term, his approach to Iran has garnered attention in Iran, the United States, and the Middle East. Some analyses suggest that Trump, although opposed to military interventions and regime changes, may use maximum pressure to weaken the Islamic Republic.
Reports also indicate that Trump has considered Richard Grenell, his former U.S. Ambassador to Germany, as a candidate for Special Representative for Iran. However, Grenell has denied these reports.
As tensions rise over Iran’s nuclear program and its military cooperation with global powers like Russia, the position of “Special Representative for Iran” is expected to gain more importance.
