With nuclear tensions mounting and the clock ticking toward a sixth round of high-stakes talks, U.S. President Donald Trump issued a grim assessment Tuesday, saying he’s “less confident” than ever that a deal can be reached with Iran — as Tehran threatened to unleash attacks on American military installations across the region.

“I don’t know. I did think so, and I’m getting more and more — less confident about it,” Trump said on the Pod Force One podcast with New York Post columnist Miranda Devine. “They seem to be delaying… Something happened to them.”

Trump said that regardless of whether a deal is ultimately reached or not, he won’t allow the regime to get a nuclear weapon. “If they don’t make a deal, they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon. If they do make a deal, they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon, too… So it’s not going to matter from that standpoint.”

He added: “It would be nicer to do it without warfare… but we’ll see. Time will tell.”

Trump’s remarks came as Iranian Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh escalated the rhetoric, warning that all U.S. bases in the Middle East are “within our reach” and vowing to strike them if talks fail.

“If a conflict is imposed on us… we will boldly target them in host countries,” Nasirzadeh declared at a press conference. He also revealed Iran had recently tested a missile equipped with a massive two-ton warhead.

The backdrop is a diplomatic standoff approaching a boiling point. Iran is expected to submit a counter-proposal to a U.S. draft agreement it previously rejected. Trump claimed Tehran is growing “much more aggressive” at the table, while Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February had already called for further military buildup — including ballistic missile expansion.

Talks are slated for this weekend, though confusion reigns over the schedule: Trump says they’ll be held Thursday, while Tehran claims Sunday in Oman.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)