US President Donald Trump on Thursday said that America could take the next step in its standoff with Iran within the next 10 days, warning that “bad things will happen” if a “meaningful deal” is not reached.Speaking at a Board of Peace event in Washington, Trump said talks with Iranian representatives are ongoing and described them as constructive, but cautioned that progress had historically been difficult.Referring to US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, leading the US in indirect talks with Iran, who were sitting across from Trump, the president said, “Good people and they like them both. And they’ve had some very good meetings. They’ve had some very interesting meetings having to do with, as you know, Iran is a hotspot right now, and they’re meeting and they have a good relationship with the representatives of Iran.”Trump further went on to warn, if over the period of next 10 days there is no meaningful deal, America might escalate and take a step further,“And, you know, good talks are being had. It’s proven to be, over the years, not easy to make a meaningful deal with Iran. We have to make a meaningful deal, otherwise bad things will happen,” Trump said. “So now we may have to take a step further or may not. Maybe we’re going to make a deal. You’re going to be finding out over the next, probably, 10 days,” he added.

Rising tensions and military buildup

Trump’s remarks come amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran. As reported earlier by, Reuters the US has significantly increased its military presence in the Middle East, deploying aircraft carriers, fighter jets and additional defence systems to the region.Satellite imagery reviewed by Reuters has also shown Iran reinforcing key nuclear and missile-related sites, including fortifying tunnel entrances and adding concrete shielding at sensitive facilities. Tehran has consistently denied seeking nuclear weapons.The renewed push for a deal follows years of strained diplomacy. Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 nuclear agreement during his first term and has since advocated for a new arrangement that he says must be stronger and more comprehensive. Efforts under former President Joe Biden to revive the earlier framework did not yield a final agreement.Recent negotiations in Geneva between US officials and Iranian representatives were described by both sides as constructive, but senior US officials have indicated that significant gaps remain.Trump’s 10-day timeline signals that a decision point may be approaching. While he reiterated that a deal remains possible, his warning suggests that Washington is prepared to consider other options if talks fail.There has been no official indication of immediate military action. However, the combination of diplomatic deadlines, visible force deployments and continued nuclear tensions has kept the spotlight on US-Iran relations in recent days.