MEZIESBLOG

Donald Trump has said he wants Iran to be “peaceful and successful” and he would “love” to make a deal with Tehran.

He said he “hated” taking action against the country last time he was in the White House, adding: “They were essentially broke and they had no money for Hezbollah, they had no money for Hamas. They had no money for any form of terror.”

But he added: “I would love to be able to make a great deal, a deal where you (Iranians) can get on with your lives.”

He said he had “many friends from Iran and many friends that are Americans from Iran, and they’re very proud of Iran”.

The president went on: “I hope we’re going to be able to do something so that it doesn’t end up in a very catastrophic situation. 

“I really want to see peace.”

He added, however: “They cannot have a nuclear weapon.

“If they can convince us that they won’t, and I hope they can, it’s very easy to do.”

Here’s a quick recap of what’s been happening across the pond during the last 24 hours:

Trade war

• US tariffs on China came into effect this morning and were immediately met with reciprocal tariffs from Beijing;
• Those tariffs on Washington will start on 10 February;
• China also launched an anti-monopoly investigation into Google, and has sanctioned two other US firms;
• The White House says Donald Trump will call Chinese leader Xi Jinping “very soon”.

Foreign policy

• Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington today;
• After welcoming Netanyahu, Trump said he wanted to permanently resettle Palestinians in a “beautiful area” and that being in Gaza was like “living in hell”;
• At their news conference, Trump floated the idea of the US taking over Gaza, rebuilding it and creating jobs there;
• Prior to Netanyahi’s arrival, the US president signed a “tough” directive against Iran and an executive order withdrawing America from the UN Human Rights Council.

Domestic policy

• The Trump administration says it has started flying undocumented immigrants to a military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba;
• Trump has confirmed he is winding down the US government’s international aid agency, USAID;
• The US Senate finance committee has voted 14-13 in favour of advancing Robert F Kennedy Jr’s nomination as health secretary;
• The Senate’s intelligence committee today voted to back Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard.