"Popular or not, I have to do it": Trump on continuing Iran conflict

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended the continuation of the conflict with Iran, saying he would not allow Tehran to develop nuclear weapons, regardless of whether the decision is politically popular or not. Speaking to reporters outside the White House, Trump stated that the decision to continue the war would become popular, considering Iran's ambition to acquire nuclear weapons.

"Look, everyone tells me it's unpopular, but I think it's very popular when you, when they hear that it's having to do with nuclear weapons, weapons that could take out Los Angeles, could take out major cities very quickly," Trump said. Reaffirming his stance on the conflict, the US President said, "Whether it's popular or not popular, I have to do it, because I'm not going to let the world be blown up on my watch. It's not going to happen."

According to the latest CNN average, Trump's approval rating has declined since the start of the war on February 28, with 36 per cent of Americans approving of his performance. Trump, however, maintained that preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons remains a priority for his administration and framed the issue as a matter of global security.

Earlier on Monday, Trump said that he had "put off" a planned attack on Iran for a short period following "big discussions" with the Islamic Republic over the ongoing West Asia crisis. Speaking to reporters, Trump said that Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and some other countries had requested the US delay the action for a few days as they believed negotiations were close to yielding a deal.

"I put it (attack on Iran) off for a little while, hopefully maybe forever, but possibly for a little while because we've had very big discussions with Iran, and we'll see what they amount to. I was asked by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and some others if we could put it off for two or three days, a short period of time, because they think that they are getting very close to making a deal," he said. "It's a very positive development, but we'll see whether or not it amounts to anything," Trump added.

He further stated that multiple countries were directly engaging with US officials and Iran in an effort to resolve the situation diplomatically. "I was called by these three countries, plus others, and they're dealing directly with our people and right now, Iran. There seems to be a very good chance that they can work something out. If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I will be very happy," the US President added. (ANI)

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