도널드 트럼프 미 대통령이 20일(현지시각) 털시 개버드 국가정보국(DNI) 국장이 이란이 핵무기를 개발하고 있지 않다고 말한 것이 “틀렸다”면서 이스라엘의 이란 공습을 중단시키는 것이 “매우 어려울 것”이라고 밝혔다.
뉴시스 보도에 따르면, 이날 정치자금 모금 행사에 참석한 트럼프는 개버드의 지난 3월 의회 발언과 관련해 질문을 받자 “내 정보기관이 틀렸다. 누가 그런 말을 했느냐”고 반문한 뒤 개버드의 발언이라는 반응에 “그가 틀렸다”고 답했다.
그러자 개버드가 X에 자신의 의회 증언을 뒤집어 “미국은 이란이 수 주 내지 수 개월 안에 핵무기를 조립해 완성할 수 있는 단계에 이르렀다는 정보를 보유하고 있다”고 썼다.
한편 트럼프는 이스라엘, 이란 간 전투 종식 협상 가능성에 회의적 입장을 드러냈다.
트럼프는 미국이 이란과의 협상에 진지하다면 이스라엘에 공습 중단을 요청해야 한다는 이란 측 제안에 대해 트럼프는 이기고 있는 이스라엘에 “지금 그런 요청을 하는 것은 매우 어려운 일이라 생각한다”고 답했다.
트럼프는 이란을 공격하려는 자신의 태도가 전쟁에 반대해온 기존 입장과 상충한다는 지적에 대해 상황이 다르다고 답했다.
그는 “그때는 대량살상무기가 없었다”며 이란이 “지금까지 모은 핵물질이 엄청난 양”이라고 강조했다. nium enrichment facility. Buried under a mountain, the facility is believed to be out of the reach of all but [America's "bunker-buster" bombs](https://apnews.com/article/bunker-buster-bomb-israel-iran-fordo-fordow-b2-nuclear-8a612cbf16aa0f99bd9992334ffc93d7).
After landing in New Jersey for an evening fundraiser for his super political action committee, Trump was asked about Gabbard's comments to Congress in March that U.S. spy agencies believed that Iran wasn't working on nuclear warheads. The president responded, "Well then, my intelligence community is wrong. Who in the intelligence community said that?"
Informed that it had been Gabbard, Trump said, "She's wrong."
In a subsequent post on X, Gabbard said her testimony was taken out of context "as a way to manufacture division."
"America has intelligence that Iran is at the point that it can produce a nuclear weapon within weeks to months, if they decide to finalize the assembly," she wrote. "President Trump has been clear that can't happen, and I agree."
Still, disavowing Gabbard's previous assessment came a day after the White House said Trump would decide within two weeks whether the U.S. military would get directly involved in the conflict between [Israel](https://apnews.com/hub/israel) and [Iran](https://apnews.com/hub/iran). It said seeking additional time was "based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future."
But on Friday, Trump himself seemed to cast doubts on the possibility of talks leading to a pause in fighting between Israel and Iran. He said that, while he might support a ceasefire, Israel's strikes on Iran could be "very hard to stop."
Asked about Iran suggesting that, if the U.S. was serious about furthering negotiations, it could call on Israel to stop its strikes, Trump responded, "I think it's very hard to make that request right now."
"If somebody is winning, it's a little bit harder to do than if somebody is losing," Trump said. "But we're ready, willing and able, and we've been speaking to Iran, and we'll see what happens."
The president later added, "It's very hard to stop when you look at it."
"Israel's doing well in terms of war. And, I think, you would say that Iran is doing less well. It's a little bit hard to get somebody to stop," Trump said.
Trump campaigned on decrying "endless wars" and has vowed to be an international peacemaker. That's led some, even among conservatives, to point to Trump's past criticism of the U.S. invasion of Iraq beginning in 2003 as being at odds with his more aggressive stance toward Iran now.
Trump suggested the two situations were very different, though.
"There were no weapons of mass destruction. I never thought there were. And that was somewhat pre-nuclear. You know, it was, it was a nuclear age, but nothing like it is today," Trump said of his past criticism of the administration of President George W. Bush.
He added of Iran's current nuclear program, "It looked like I'm right about the material that they've gathered already. It's a tremendous amount of material."
Trump also cast doubts on Iran's developing nuclear capabilities for civilian pursuits, like power generation.
"You're sitting on one of the largest oil piles anywhere in the world," he said. "It's a little bit hard to see why you'd need that."
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