U.S. and Iran sit down for talks under growing shadow of Trump's military threat

U.S. and Iranian negotiators sat down for high-stakes talks Tuesday in Geneva, with President Trump's threat to launch a new attack on the Islamic Republic if a deal on its nuclear program can't be hashed out looming large over the discussions. In:

U.S. and Iranian negotiators sat down for high-stakes talks Tuesday in Geneva, with President Trump's threat to launch a new attack on the Islamic Republic if a deal on its nuclear program can't be hashed out looming large over the discussions.

The negotiations, mediated by Oman, were expected to focus on Tehran's nuclear program, but Israel's leader has pressed Mr. Trump to include limitations on Iran's conventional ballistic missiles in any new agreement. Mr. Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in December that if no deal could be reached with Iran, the U.S. would support Israeli strikes on Iran's ballistic missile program, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

That threat of potential military action is backed up by a significant U.S. military presence in the  waters around Iran — with one aircraft carrier strike group already in the area and another on its way.

In a speech delivered in Tehran on Tuesday as the talks got underway, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was characteristically dismissive of the U.S. military threat, saying: "A warship is certainly a dangerous weapon, but even more dangerous is the weapon capable of sinking it."

Speaking Monday night to reporters on Air Force One, President Trump said he would be involved in the negotiations "indirectly." He said Iran was "typically a very tough negotiator," but said he believes the regime wants to make a deal.