'Hopefully we’ll make a deal': Despite mutual threats, US & Iran signal readiness for negotiations in Turkey this week

The United States and the Iranian regime have each signaled that they are ready to negotiate an agreement to end tensions and could potentially send representatives to a summit in Ankara, Turkey, this week, despite continuing mutual threats and recriminations by the nations’ leaders.

U.S. allies Turkey, Egypt, and Qatar are working to organize a meeting in Turkey between White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian officials, Axios reported on Sunday, adding that a senior American official said the Trump administration has made it clear it is open to holding such talks.

This update came against the backdrop of caustic back-and-forth threats by U.S. President Donald Trump and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday.

The ayatollah had warned that “this time it will be a regional war” if the U.S. strikes his regime, Iranian state media reported.

“In the past as well, American officials repeatedly talked about war… Now this man [Trump] too, keeps claiming that they have brought aircraft carriers and warplanes. The Iranian people should not and will not be frightened by such things… if America attacks or harms Iran, the Iranian nation will deliver a strong blow and any war started by America will spread across the region,” Khamenei said.

Asked about these comments during his visit to Mar-a-Lago, Trump replied, “Why wouldn’t he say that? Of course, he is going to say that.”

“We have the biggest, most powerful ships in the world over there, very close,” Trump told reporters, “Hopefully, we’ll make a deal.” If not, he added, “then we'll find out whether or not he was right.”

Iran’s chief of staff, Abdolrahim Mousavi, also weighed in over the weekend, warning that “in the event of any attack against Iran, no American will be safe. The fire in the region will burn America and its allies.”

The spokesman for Iran's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee in the parliament, Ebrahim Rezaei, said the regime has “high-level intelligence control over the enemy and are monitoring all its movements. If the United States commits any foolish act and launches an attack, it will enter a regional confrontation.”

Regime officials have notably increased their threats of regional destruction in recent weeks. Several media reports suggested that Trump called off a planned strike last month after several regional allies had advised him against it, fearing Iranian retaliation against their cities and U.S. bases in their countries.

Several Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, have stated that their territory would not be used in any potential attack against Iran, limiting U.S. options.

Despite this rhetoric, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, said on Monday that the regime expects a framework for negotiations to be ready within a few days, adding, “Countries of the region are acting as mediators in the exchange of messages.”

“Several points have been addressed, and we are examining and finalizing the details of each stage in the diplomatic process, which we hope to conclude in the coming days. This concerns the method and framework,” Baqaei said, adding that the regime had received no U.S. ultimatum to return to the negotiating table.

According to Channel 12 News, Israel has been warning the U.S. against Iranian attempts at deception and playing for time with deliberately prolonged negotiations.

Israel is demanding that Iran commit to completely scuttling its nuclear and missile program, while ending the support for its regional proxies in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and elsewhere, in order to accept a potential agreement, Channel 12 reported.

Israeli officials have allegedly told the Trump administration that, if the goal is to topple the regime, an even larger military force than Trump’s “armada” might be required.

“This is a historic opportunity that may not come again – and it must not be missed,” Israeli officials told the Trump administration, according to Channel 12.

“Israel will not be able to accept Iran’s missile capabilities over time; the Americans understand this as well,” the channel quoted an Israeli official as saying.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a high-level security meeting after the return of IDF Chief of Staff, Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir, from Washington on Sunday. The meeting was only attended by the heads of the security establishment, including Zamir, Mossad Director David Barnea, and Defense Minister Israel Katz.

According to Channel 12, Israel believes that despite the attempts at negotiations, the U.S. has passed the “point of no return” regarding its military buildup and verbal threats against the regime, and will attack it at some point in the future.