BBC:

Tabby Wilson

Donald Trump says he has told Iran it has to do "two things" to avoid military action, as the US builds up its forces in the Gulf.

"Number one, no nuclear. And number two, stop killing protesters," the US President said, adding that "they are killing them by the thousands".

"We have a lot of very big, very powerful ships sailing to Iran right now, and it would be great if we didn't have to use them."

His latest remarks follow weeks of pressure on Iran to negotiate a deal on its nuclear programme.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said armed forces were ready "with their fingers on the trigger" to "immediately and powerfully respond" to any aggression.

Araghchi arrived in Istanbul on Friday for talks expected to focus on averting the threat of any military action by the US.

Later, in a call with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey was willing to help "de-escalate" tensions between Tehran and Washington, his office said.

Trump made his latest comments at the premiere of a documentary about his wife Melania.

Earlier this week, Trump wrote on Truth Social: "Hopefully Iran will quickly 'Come to the Table' and negotiate a fair and equitable deal - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS."

He warned that a "massive Armada is heading to Iran", and it was "ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfil its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary".

In response, Araghchi said: "Iran has always welcomed a mutually beneficial, fair and equitable NUCLEAR DEAL - on equal footing, and free from coercion, threats, and intimidation - which ensures Iran's rights to PEACEFUL nuclear technology, and guarantees NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS."

"Such weapons have no place in our security calculations and we have NEVER sought to acquire them," he added.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said that no negotiations with the US were currently under way, despite "exchanges of messages".

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