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President Donald Trump said he would “probably be open” to meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian at the United Nations this week while describing himself as being in “deciding mode” over whether to pursue a deal, continued economic pressure or further military action against Iran.

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.

President Donald Trump said Sunday that he would probably be willing to meet Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during this week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York as Washington and Tehran exchange new threats while maintaining possible diplomatic channels for ending the war.

Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst reported Trump’s response after questioning the president about Pezeshkian’s expected attendance at the General Assembly.

“I asked the President about the U.N. General Assembly this week,” Yingst said. “Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is going to be there, and I asked if he’d be open to meeting with the Iranian leader, and he said he’d probably be open to it, but described this weekend as no different from any other weekend despite these alerts that went out to U.S. citizens across the region.”

Pezeshkian and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are part of the Iranian delegation authorized to attend the gathering in New York. The United States announced last week that it would issue visas for a core Iranian delegation while imposing travel restrictions on its members.

No Trump-Pezeshkian meeting has been formally announced.

Trump’s comments nevertheless leave open the possibility of direct contact at a moment when both governments are publicly discussing negotiations while simultaneously preparing for further military escalation. Pezeshkian is among the world leaders expected to address the General Assembly as the Iran war dominates this year’s diplomatic gathering.

In a separate Fox News account of the exchange, Yingst said Trump described himself as being in “deciding mode” and predicted that “very big things are going to be happening in the not-so-distant future.”

Trump also used unusually stark language when discussing the military option.

“My question is, if and when do I blow the entire nation up?” Trump said, according to Yingst’s account.

Other reporting Sunday described Trump as weighing several possible courses: escalating military operations, continuing economic pressure or reaching an agreement with Tehran. Trump also warned Iran to “behave” as he considered his next step.

The comments came one day after Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Tehran had transmitted conditions for ending the war to Washington through Qatar.

Iran has said its conditions include ending the war on all fronts, releasing frozen Iranian assets and ending the U.S. naval blockade. Qatar and Pakistan have been acting as intermediaries after earlier negotiations between Washington and Tehran broke down.

Trump had said earlier in the week that the United States was “hopefully” approaching the end of the conflict and that Iran wanted an agreement.

Sunday’s statements showed that diplomacy and military pressure are continuing in parallel.

Iranian military officials responded to Trump’s latest warnings by threatening substantial retaliation if the United States launches another major attack. Reuters reported that Iranian officials said they possessed intelligence suggesting another strike could be coming and warned that U.S. forces and regional allies could face retaliation.

The regional security situation became more volatile Saturday when Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement launched attacks against Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis claimed they had fired missiles and drones at “sensitive” locations in Riyadh and at facilities belonging to Saudi Aramco in Yanbu, according to reporting on the attacks.

Saudi Arabia confirmed that its air defenses intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched toward Riyadh early Saturday. Saudi officials also said Houthi attacks against Baish, Taif, Farasan and Yanbu had been thwarted.

Residents reported hearing an explosion, while smoke was seen near King Khalid International Airport. Saudi authorities reported no casualties or damage from the intercepted ballistic missile.

The Houthis separately claimed their attacks had caused “massive fires,” but those assertions were not independently established.

The attacks prompted renewed concern about the possibility of the Iran conflict widening further across the region.

The State Department circulated a security warning telling Americans that “due to tensions in the Middle East, the security environment remains complex with the potential for unforeseen escalation.”

U.S. citizens in the region were advised to exercise heightened vigilance and prepare for “potential flight cancellations, airspace closures, and travel disruptions.”

The department’s broader worldwide security guidance similarly warns Americans that tensions in the Middle East could produce unexpected escalation and recommends monitoring airline operations, embassy alerts and instructions from local authorities.

The warnings come as the war continues to disrupt energy markets and major shipping routes.

Iran has severely restricted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, while Houthi forces have intensified military operations affecting Saudi Arabia and waters near the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb. The combined disruptions have created growing concerns about oil supplies and commercial shipping.

Trump is expected to use the U.N. gathering for a series of meetings involving Middle Eastern leaders.

He has previously said he plans to meet Gulf Cooperation Council leaders during the General Assembly, with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman among the governments involved.

The possibility of a meeting with Pezeshkian would add another diplomatic channel at a point when Washington and Tehran are simultaneously exchanging some of their strongest public warnings of the conflict.

For now, Trump has not said that a meeting is scheduled or that he has decided whether to intensify military operations.

His message Sunday instead left all of those possibilities open: negotiations with Iran, continued economic pressure or another expansion of the war.

Trump told Fox News he remains in “deciding mode,” while his reported willingness to meet Pezeshkian ensures that diplomacy remains one of the options under consideration as world leaders gather in New York.

Original article