Former Trump administration special representative for Iran Elliott Abrams said Saturday that any negotiations with Tehran should be approached with extreme caution, warning that the Iranian regime remains fundamentally untrustworthy despite signs that a nuclear agreement may be nearing completion.
"If you're negotiating with this Iranian regime, watch your wallet," Abrams told Newsmax's "Saturday Report."
"This is the same regime that says 'death to America,' that's been killing Americans. So no trust, no trust."
Abrams said he believes the U.S. and Iran are moving closer to an agreement, despite ongoing public disagreements over its terms.
"I do think we are heading towards some kind of deal," he said.
"I think the Iranians are trying to get last licks in. I suspect we'll do a deal sometime during the current week," Abrams said.
Abrams suggested the timing could be influenced by Iranian political considerations.
"It will not be tomorrow because they don't want it to be on the president's birthday," he said.
While acknowledging the broader regional interests at stake, Abrams argued that President Donald Trump's primary focus remains preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
"The president's key goal in all of this from the beginning has been their nuclear weapons program," Abrams said.
"That's the thing that I believe he is focused on now. That's number one for him."
Abrams stressed that Iranian promises alone would be insufficient.
"Are they going to pledge not to build a nuclear weapon? Sure. But we can't trust them anyway," he said.
"The key thing may be what happens to all that highly enriched uranium. Does it get destroyed? Does it get taken out?
"Because without enriched uranium, they can't make a nuclear weapon," he said.
Abrams also highlighted reports that ending Iranian support for terrorist organizations could be included in the agreement.
"If we can get the nuclear highly enriched uranium out, if we can stop them from supporting all of those terrorist groups, if the Strait of Hormuz is open, then we are much better off than we were when this war started," Abrams said.
Acknowledging conflicting claims from Washington and Tehran about the contents of a potential deal, Abrams added: "We'll see in the next few days what's actually in it."
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