- US President Trump said Iran views ceasefire as shooting in a more moderate manner
- Trump made the comment hours after US and Iranian military exchanged fire
- He suggested a peace deal with Iran might be reached over the weekend
US President Donald Trump has suggested that Iran, which, according to him, is in different parts of the world, has a different understanding of the term "ceasefire". Talking to reporters at the White House, the US leader claimed that for Tehran, a temporary truce meant "when you're shooting in a more moderate manner".
Trump was asked how he would define a ceasefire just hours after the US and Iranian military exchanged fire, marking one of the most significant escalations in recent weeks.
"Pretty much the way it is," he said.
"That's a different part of the world. You know, I'd say in that part of the world, a ceasefire is when you're shooting in a more moderate manner."
Smiling, he said, "It's not bad."
"But it's true. I mean, a ceasefire there is much different than a ceasefire in other parts of the world," Trump said.
The American commander-in-chief also implied that it was possible that the US and Iran could come together for a peace deal "over the weekend".
Trump's War In Iran
Trump is facing warnings from foes and allies alike that he's getting boxed in on the Iran war, a conflict he sold as a brief military incursion but that has since settled into a holding pattern.
It's been nearly a week since US and Iranian negotiators reached a tentative agreement to extend the ceasefire in the conflict by 60 days and start a new round of talks on Iran's nuclear program that required Trump's sign-off.
But Trump has called for unspecified changes to the agreement, and Iranian officials -- perhaps calculating that the Republican president is reluctant to restart the bombardment after burning through key weapons systems -- are showing no signs they'll give in to new demands.
A series of strikes by the US and Iran this week has raised fresh concern that the ceasefire could collapse. The shaky moment followed repeated claims by Trump since a 14-day ceasefire was agreed to on April 7 -- following 38 days of US and Israel's bombing of Iran -- that a deal is just days away and the Iranian side is begging to come to a settlement.
