Vance urges Iran to make a deal instead of facing ‘option B’: ‘We’re locked and loaded’
by Tom Howell Jr. · The Washington TimesVice President J.D. Vance on Tuesday said the Iranians face a simple, two-way choice — agree to a peace deal that prevents them from getting a nuclear weapon or face another military bombardment.
Mr. Vance said President Trump would prefer not to restart strikes. The vice president added he “thinks” Iran wants to make a deal, but the administration needs to see constructive movement from Tehran.
“It takes two to tango,” Mr. Vance said at the White House press briefing, in which he stood for Karoline Leavitt, who’s on maternity leave. “We’re locked and loaded. We don’t want to go down that pathway, but the president is willing and able to go down that pathway if we have to.”
Mr. Trump launched a military operation against Iran on Feb. 28 to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The two sides entered a ceasefire in early April, but Mr. Trump’s patience is wearing thin as peace talks drag on.
The president on Monday canceled planned strikes on Iran after Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates asked him to hold off, citing signs that a deal could be imminent.
“We think that we’ve made a lot of progress,” Mr. Vance said. “We’re in a pretty good spot here, but there’s an option B.”
He said option B means restarting the military campaign.
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“I don’t think that’s what the president wants and I don’t think that’s what the Iranians want, either,” Mr. Vance said.
The vice president said if Iran obtained a nuke, the consequences would ripple outward, setting off a scramble in the Middle East and elsewhere for similar weaponry.
“It would make us all much less safe,” Mr. Vance said.
Mr. Vance tried to allay fears that U.S. troops would be stuck in another Middle East conflict with no end in sight.
“This is not going to be the sort of thing that lasts forever,” Mr. Vance said. “This is not a forever war.”
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Tom Howell Jr.
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