United States (US) President Donald Trump has said that he knew “nothing” about the possibility of a US strike on Iran this weekend, after his Ambassador to Türkiye Tom Barrack said an attack could “absolutely” take place within days.
Barrack, who also serves as the US special presidential envoy for Syria and Iraq, made the remarks in an interview, clips of which circulated online on Friday.
Asked about the ambassador’s comments and whether he had changed his position on delaying possible strikes until after the November 3 midterm elections, Trump appeared surprised.
“That was my ambassador?” Trump asked.
“He’s a pretty powerful man, I guess. Well, if that’s the case, I don’t know anything about it,” he added.
Barrack had said the US could launch an attack as soon as this weekend when asked about the possibility of military action against Iran. “Could there be a strike this weekend? Absolutely,” he said.
The ambassador also outlined the Trump administration’s objectives towards Tehran, saying Washington was not seeking regime change but wanted to reduce security threats in the region and beyond.
“The consequence won’t be regime change. The president is interested in rebalancing so that there’s no hostages, no threats, and the world can calm down,” Barrack said.
He added that Trump remained willing to reach an agreement with Iran, although the president had set clear expectations for any potential deal.
“Trump is open and available and accessible to a deal, but he’s also been very clear about what he wants,” Barrack said.
