UPDATE 2 - Trump says regime change in Iran 'would be the best thing that could happen'

​​​​​​​ADDS REMARKS BY TRUMP

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Donald Trump on Friday signaled support for the idea of regime change in Iran.

“Seems like that would be the best thing that could happen," Trump told reporters after a visit to Fort Bragg in the state of North Carolina.

"For 47 years, they've been talking and talking and talking. In the meantime, we've lost a lot of lives while they talk. Legs blown off, arms blown off, faces blown off. We've been going on for a long time. So let's see what happens," he added.

Trump also reiterated that "tremendous power" has arrived to the region. The US has steadily built up military forces in the region since Trump has threatened strikes against Iran following the eruption of countrywide protests in late December.

"Additional power, as you know, and other carriers going out shortly, so we'll see it now, if we could get it settled for once," he said.

When asked who he wants to "take over" Iran, Trump replied, "I don’t want to talk about that. There are people."

Trump has said the US is prepared to deploy a “very big force” if ongoing negotiations with Iran fail.

"Well, in case we don't make a deal, we'll need it ... If we have a deal, we could cut it short. It'll be leaving. It'll be leaving very soon. We have one out there that just arrived ... We have it ready. A big, a very big force," Trump told reporters when asked why he decided to send a second aircraft carrier to the region.

When asked what remained to be pursued after claiming that Iranian nuclear sites were "totally obliterated," Trump said, “You could get whatever the dust is down there.”

"If we do it, that would be the least of the mission. But we'd probably grab whatever is left," he added.

His remarks came after local media reported that the US will send the USS Gerald R. Ford to the Middle East to back up the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group.

In North Carolina, Trump was asked what Iran could do to avoid a US attack.

"If they give us the right deal, we won't do that — but, you know, historically, they haven't done that. I will say they want to talk. But so far, they do a lot of talking and no action," Trump replied.

The president reiterated that the US does not want any nuclear enrichment by Iran.

The US and Iran held indirect talks in the capital Muscat on Feb. 6 with Omani mediation to discuss Tehran’s nuclear program.

The sit-down marked the end of a roughly eight-month suspension after the US launched strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities during an escalation of the Iran–Israel conflict in June 2025.

Amid the negotiations, the US has significantly increased its military footprint in the region as Trump warns Iran that it must make a deal.

Uranium enrichment remains a central point of dispute. The US demands Iran halt uranium enrichment and transfer highly enriched uranium out of the country.

Washington has also sought to include Iran’s missile program and its support for armed groups in the region in the negotiations, but Tehran has repeatedly said it would not negotiate issues beyond its nuclear program.