The US will hold direct talks with Iran regarding the nuclear program.

U.S. President Trump stated that talks with Tehran will begin on Saturday. However, Trump insists that Tehran cannot acquire nuclear weapons.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. will begin direct talks with Iran regarding its nuclear program and warned that Tehran would face "great danger" if the talks fail. Trump made this statement during a meeting in the Oval Office with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the first world leader to visit since he imposed tariffs on countries around the world. In a statement to reporters, Trump said, "We are having direct talks with Iran, and they have started; they will continue on Saturday. We have a very big meeting, and we will see what happens." He added, "I think everyone agrees that doing the obvious thing, which is making a deal, is preferable, and the obvious thing is not something I want to be involved in, or frankly that Israel wants to be involved in." Trump did not reveal the location of the meetings starting on Saturday or who from his administration would participate. During the discussion, Prime Minister Netanyahu also promised to eliminate Israel's trade deficit with the U.S. following the 17% tariff imposed last week. In a statement made in the Oval Office, Netanyahu said, "We intend to do this very quickly; we believe this is the right thing to do, and we will also eliminate various trade barriers that have been unnecessarily imposed." Netanyahu also added that Israel could serve as a model for other countries that "need to do the same thing." However, it was understood that this might not be enough to convince Trump to reconsider, as he responded with "maybe we won't" when asked whether he would lower the tariffs imposed on Israeli goods. Referring to the billions of dollars in aid the U.S. provides each year, Trump added, "Remember, we are helping Israel a lot." The two leaders also confirmed that they discussed ongoing efforts to secure the release of hostages in Gaza and expressed hope for the success of a new agreement aimed at securing the release of more hostages. Prime Minister Netanyahu emphasized Israel's determination to secure the release of all hostages and to remove Hamas from Gaza. He also mentioned that President Trump discussed the plan for resettling displaced Palestinians during Gaza's reconstruction, calling this initiative a "bold" vision. Meanwhile, on Monday, hundreds of Israelis protested against Netanyahu and his government following moves to dismiss senior security and legal officials and to restart the war in Gaza. One of the protesters, Menashe Yehezkel-Baum, said, "We gathered here today to send a very clear message. Stop destroying our fundamental and indispensable institutions, such as the Supreme Court, the army, the security services, and the police." Families of the hostages, along with those recently released from Gaza and their supporters, called on Trump to help end the conflicts.