White House makes the case for a U.S. military strike on Iran

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Wednesday that many arguments could be made in support of a U.S. military strike on Iran. It would be wise for Iran to make a deal with President Donald Trump, especially after the administration obliterated Iran’s nuclear facilities, she added. Her comments came about a day after diplomats met in Geneva for a second round of indirect nuclear negotiations with Iran.

Did she comment on the second round of nuclear talks with Iran? Negotiators made some progress on Tuesday, but both sides remain quite divided on some issues, Leavitt said. The administration expected Iran to come back to the table with more details in the coming weeks, she said. Leavitt also declined to comment further about the timeline for a deal. The United States will also remain in close communication with Israel as negotiations play out, she added.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi appeared more optimistic than Leavitt about the Tuesday talks, describing what he characterized as a new window of opportunity that had opened with the United States. Araghchi also specifically called for the United States to stop threatening to use force against Iran.

Dig deeper: Read my previous report for more on the latest Iran negotiations.