Trump says US may de-nuclearise Iran without a deal, calls Tehran 'liars and cheaters'

US President Donald Trump has signalled that Washington could move ahead with efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons even without a formal agreement, while sharply criticising Tehran's leadership and reiterating his opposition to the 2015 nuclear deal.

Trump made the remarks during his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the 2026 NATO Summit in Ankara, where he contrasted his proposed approach with the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), negotiated during former US President Barack Obama's administration.

"JCPOA, what a terrible deal. I call it the Obama nuclear waste deal. What he did with that deal is he caused tremendous hardship in the Middle East. It was a terrible, terrible thing to do. And we've been just the opposite. Our deal is a wall to a nuclear weapon. His deal was a road to a nuclear weapon. We couldn't," Trump said.

"They'll never build a nuclear weapon under our deal. But I don't know if we're going to have a deal. We may just do it without a deal because, you know what, It's easier because these people, they lie and they cheat and you have an agreement and they'll go outside," he added.

Trump renews criticism of the JCPOA

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), finalised in July 2015, imposed strict and verifiable restrictions on Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for relief from international economic sanctions.

Trump has long opposed the agreement, arguing that it failed to permanently prevent Iran from developing nuclear capabilities. In 2018, during his first term as president, he withdrew the United States from the accord, saying it was inadequate to address Iran's nuclear ambitions.

'I don't want to deal with them anymore'

Earlier in the day, Trump declared that, from his perspective, any ceasefire-related engagement with Iran had effectively come to an end and indicated he no longer wished to pursue diplomacy with Tehran.

"To me, I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum... They're led by sick people... I'll speak to our negotiators. They want to negotiate - they're good people... but they have to come back to me. As far as I'm concerned, it's just a waste of time dealing with them," he said.

Trump also accused Iranian leaders of making commitments during negotiations only to contradict them publicly afterward.

"For instance, they agreed, well, we'll never have a nuclear weapon. They agreed. Then they go outside, they have a news conference or they leak that we never discuss the subject," he said.

(With inputs from ANI)