WASHINGTON, June 7 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said in an interview aired on Sunday that Washington is "very close" to reaching a peace deal with Tehran, but vowed to keep roughly 50,000 U.S. troops in the region, while urging Israel to take a more surgical approach in its attacks on Hezbollah.
"It costs us very little to keep them (U.S. troops) there," Trump told NBC News during the interview taped on Friday. "I would say it would be foolhardy to do that because maybe we may use them" to force Iran's hand at the negotiating table.
"I think we'll keep them there until such time as we have a completion," Trump said. "I don't consider (the troops) in danger."
Washington and Tehran are "very close" to signing a peace deal, Trump claimed, adding that any new agreement with Iran will not unfreeze any of its assets immediately.
That "comes after," Trump said.
The president said a main sticking point during the ongoing negotiations is his demand for an additional provision to ensure Iran cannot execute an end run around the deal.
"We have a couple of points. They don't even seem like big points," he said. "They've conceded the fact that they will not have nuclear weapons. We had a clause in there that (they) will not develop nuclear weapons. And everybody was very happy with it except me."
"And I said, 'well, what happens if they, not develop, but they go out and purchase, they acquire? I want to put the word, 'if they buy, purchase or acquire,'" he said.
Trump's claims of securing a commitment from Iran not to develop nuclear weapons have puzzled nuclear experts who note that Tehran has made that pledge for more than 50 years, The New York Times noted.
During the interview, Trump also said he would like to see Israel's attacks on Hezbollah surgical.
"I'd like to see a more surgical attack on Hezbollah. I think it should be more surgical," Trump said when asked if he disagrees with Israel's continued bombings of Lebanon.
The president said he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remain aligned on the broader objectives of their joint war with Iran as it entered its 100th day, despite some differences over Israel's military offensive in Lebanon.
Trump said on Monday he had secured commitments from both Israel and Hezbollah to de-escalate tensions, while the Lebanese presidency said Hezbollah had accepted a U.S. proposal for a mutual cessation of attacks.
Israel and Hezbollah continued trading attacks during their weeks-long ceasefire. Earlier on Sunday, Lebanon's National News Agency reported that Israel launched a fresh airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs, killing at least two people and injuring 11 others.
Tehran will give a "decisive and painful response" to the Israeli attack on Beirut's southern suburbs, Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, wrote on social media platform X on Sunday. Enditem
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