US Battle Group in Middle East on Highest Alert for Potential Iran Strike This Weekend
The United States battle group in the Middle East has reportedly been placed on highest alert for a possible strike against Iran starting Saturday this weekend, according to CBS News.
However, the broadcast reported that President Donald Trump has not yet decided whether to proceed with an attack.
Meanwhile, the latest round of negotiations between Washington and Tehran regarding Iran’s nuclear programme took place in Geneva on Tuesday, with the US delegation led by presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran represented by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Araghchi described the discussions as “constructive” and said both sides would begin drafting texts for exchange before a third round of talks. However, no date or location has been set for the next meeting.
Tehran emphasised that considerable work remains to be done to reach a final agreement. Iran also rejected broadening the agenda to include its missile programme and support for proxy groups such as Hezbollah, insisting that the focus must remain on nuclear restrictions and the lifting of sanctions.
On Washington’s side, President Donald Trump’s envoys — Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — have not issued any official comment. However, sources familiar with the negotiations indicated there had been “progress”, though a number of critical issues remain unresolved.
“Red Lines” Not Yet Addressed
US Vice President JD Vance said the second round of negotiations with Iran was productive in certain respects, but Tehran was not yet willing to engage in discussions on a number of “red lines” set by President Donald Trump.
Vance did not specify which “red lines” Tehran had refused to discuss, but he affirmed that the primary US interest is preventing Iran from possessing nuclear weapons.
“In some ways, it went well. They agreed to meet afterwards. But in other ways, it’s very clear that the president has set a number of red lines that the Iranian side has not been willing to acknowledge and discuss,” Vance said in an interview with Fox News.
Previously, Trump stated that a “great armada” was heading towards Iran, whilst expressing hope that Tehran would agree to negotiate and sign a “fair and equitable” deal involving the complete cessation of nuclear weapons.