Trump defends diplomacy, Pompeo sets conditions; Does the US really have an “Iran policy”?

Tabnak – Shortly after US President Donald Trump’s declared willingness to talk with his Iranian counterpart without any precondition, his Secretary of State presents a different position. The contradictory remarks by high-ranking US official could be considered as yet another sign of Washington’s ambiguous approach toward Iran.

Last night, US President Donald Trump said he is willing to meet with Iran's leadership, without preconditions, "whenever they want," a sharp departure from his threats against the Islamic Republic last week.

"I would certainly meet with Iran if they wanted to meet," Trump said during a joint news conference at the White House alongside Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Monday, CNN reported.

"I do believe that they will probably end up wanting to meet. I'm ready to meet whenever they want to,” he added. "No preconditions," he added. "They want to meet, I'll meet, whenever they want."

Trump touted the benefits of diplomacy, saying he would "meet with anybody" and once again argued that his July 12 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin -- which drew heated bipartisan criticism -- was a success.

"Speaking to other people, especially when you're talking about potentials of war and death and famine and lots of other things -- you meet. There's nothing wrong with meeting," Trump said.

However, despite Trump’s claim that there would be no preconditions for possible talks with the Iranians, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appeared on CNBC hours later to do set some conditions.

"We've said this before," said the former CIA chief. “If the Iranians demonstrate a commitment to make fundamental changes in how they treat their own people, reduce their malign behavior, can agree that it's worthwhile to enter into a nuclear agreement that actually prevents proliferation, then the president said he's prepared to sit down and have the conversation with them.”

Back in May, Pompeo had set 12 conditions for talks with Iran, which were dismissed by Tehran.

The contradictory remarks by the American officials on issues related to Iran, could be interpreted as a sign of their indecision on what exact policy would be the most appropriate one to pursue vis-à-vis the Islamic Republic.

Meanwhile, some observers believe that although Monday's olive branch from Trump marks an abrupt shift in tone, it may be little more than theater with US midterm elections looming on the horizon.

The US President has been a strident critic of Iran, threatening Tehran with "consequences" as recently as July 22, while his administration pursues a strategy that many see as regime change in all but name.