President Donald Trump said Wednesday in Paris that the 60-day timeline outlined in a new memorandum of understanding with Iran is not a firm deadline for reaching a final nuclear agreement, signaling flexibility as negotiations move forward.
"No, I don't. Could take longer," Trump told reporters when asked whether the 60-day period represented a final deadline.
"I don't view it as hard. Just as long as they're behaving, I really don't care that much."
His comments came after senior administration officials released the full text of the memorandum, which states that the United States and Iran are committed to "negotiating and achieving the final deal in a maximum 60 days extended with mutual consent."
Trump said he expects the memorandum to be formally signed within about 48 hours.
The president also emphasized that the agreement remains preliminary.
"No, it's not final. It's a memorandum of understanding," Trump said earlier Wednesday, warning that military action could resume if Iran fails to comply.
"If they don't behave, we'll go back to dropping bombs right smack in the middle of their head."
Under the framework, Iran would pledge never to develop a nuclear weapon, similar to a provision in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal negotiated under then-President Barack Obama. Trump withdrew from the agreement during his first term.
However, the memorandum leaves unresolved several key details of Tehran's nuclear program, including the fate of its stockpile of enriched uranium. Trump downplayed the significance of securing Iran's nuclear material, arguing that preventing the development of a nuclear weapon is the more important objective.
"It's much less important because it's very hard to get at, much less important than not having a nuclear weapon," he said.
The president also suggested he would not object to Iran maintaining conventional ballistic missiles, provided regional rivals possess similar capabilities.
"A ballistic missile is not the same thing as what we're talking about when we talk nuclear," Trump said.
"If Saudi Arabia and Qatar and they all have some, I would say in relative proportion, I think it's OK."
Asked about the U.S. military presence in the Persian Gulf following the agreement, Trump said forces would likely remain in the region "for a little while" as the administration monitors implementation of the deal.