Donald Trump announced that a large U.S. naval force—described by him as an “armada”—is moving toward Iran, expressing hope that Tehran will agree to a “fair and balanced” deal to avoid nuclear weapons and a potential conflict. Iran, for its part, says it is ready for dialogue but will respond if provoked by the Americans.

In a post, Trump said that the armada, led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, is moving with “great speed, great power, enthusiasm, and determination,” stressing that it is a larger fleet than the one sent to Venezuela.

He expressed hope that Iran would “come to the table” for negotiations and reach an agreement that would ban nuclear weapons and be “good for all parties.”

The U.S. president emphasized that time is running out and reiterated his call for Iran to pursue an agreement, recalling previous military actions he described as “Operation Midnight Hammer.”

“The next attack will be much worse! Don’t let this happen again,” he concluded in his post.

Tehran’s response

Iran is prepared for talks with the United States but will defend itself if provoked, Iran’s diplomatic mission to the United Nations said following Donald Trump’s post.

“Iran is ready for dialogue, based on mutual respect and (mutual) interests. But if pressured, it will defend itself and respond as never before,” Iran’s mission said in a post on the X platform.