Trump to decide on US action in Iran 'within next two weeks': White House

US President Donald Trump has said he will decide whether to attack Iran within the next two weeks due to a "substantial" chance of negotiations, as Tel Aviv and Tehran traded fire for a seventh day.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt read out a message from Trump at a briefing on Thursday, saying there had been "a lot of speculation" about whether the United States would be "directly involved."

"Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks," Trump said in the statement.

Leavitt said that Trump was interested in pursuing a diplomatic solution with Iran, but his top priority was ensuring that Iran could not obtain a nuclear weapon.

She said any deal would have to prohibit enrichment of uranium by Tehran and eliminate Iran's ability to achieve a nuclear weapon.

"If there's a chance for diplomacy, the president's always going to grab it," Leavitt said.

"But he's not afraid to use strength as well I will add." Leavitt declined to say if Trump would seek congressional authorisation for any strikes on Iran.

'I may do it, I may not do it'

Trump had said on Wednesday that Iran had asked to send officials to the White House to negotiate a deal on its nuclear program and end the conflict with Israel. Iran denied it would do so.

Leavitt said that "correspondence has continued" between the United States and Iran when asked about reports that Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff had been in touch with Iran's foreign minister.

But she said she was "not tracking" that Witkoff would go to Geneva for talks with Iran.

Trump held his third meeting in three days in the White House's highly secured Situation Room on Thursday as he continued to mull whether to join Israel's bombing campaign.

When asked on Wednesday if he would take military action against Iran, the US president said, "I may do it, I may not do it."

Israel bombed nuclear targets in Iran and Iran fired missiles and drones at Israel, as a week-old air war escalated and neither side showed any sign of an exit strategy.

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Source: TRT