U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he hoped the United States and Iran can reach a deal "over the next month," while warning of "very traumatic" consequences if negotiations fail.

"We have to make a deal, otherwise it's going to be very traumatic, very traumatic. I don't want that to happen, but we have to make a deal," Trump told reporters.

Trump, who is considering sending a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East to pressure Iran, recalled the U.S. military strikes he ordered on Tehran's nuclear facilities during Israel's 12-day war with Iran in July 2025.

"We'll see if we can get a deal with them, and if we can't, we'll have to go to phase two. Phase two will be very tough for them," Trump added.

The comments come amid sustained U.S. pressure on Iran, including an expanded American military presence in the Middle East. The U.S. has deployed multiple naval assets to the region, including the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, while the Pentagon has reportedly instructed a second carrier strike group to prepare for potential deployment.

The United States and Iran held indirect talks on Iran's nuclear issue in Oman on February 6. Although both sides later signaled openness to continued dialogue, concerns about a possible military confrontation have not been dispelled.

Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council and senior advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said on Thursday that Iran had not conveyed any direct messages to the U.S. According to Larijani, Omani officials relayed certain points from the American side to Tehran for evaluation.

He said both Iran and the United States favor continuing negotiations but stressed that internal consultations are needed on both sides to ensure any talks can produce results.

'General skepticism'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said he hoped that U.S. President Donald Trump was creating the conditions to reach a deal with Iran that would avoid military action.

Netanyahu, who met Trump for talks in Washington on Wednesday, said he had expressed "general skepticism" and said that if an agreement was reached, "it must include the elements that are vital to Israel."

They include a halt to Iran's nuclear program and limits on its ballistic missiles and Iran's proxies, he added.

"I think that the conditions he is creating, combined with the fact that they surely understand they made a mistake last time by not reaching an agreement, may create the circumstances for achieving a good deal," Netanyahu said.

The two leaders spoke behind closed doors for more than two-and-a-half hours in what Trump described as a "very good meeting."

But the U.S. president said no major decisions were made and stopped short of publicly accepting Netanyahu's entreaties.

"We share a very close, very genuine, and very candid connection," Netanyahu said, noting the discussions focused on several issues, but primarily on the negotiations with Iran, and Trump wanted to "hear my opinion."

"The President believes that the Iranians have already learned who they are dealing with," he said, referring to Israel's 12-day conflict with Iran that culminated with U.S. air attacks on Iran's nuclear sites.

Israeli media reports said Israel insisted that any U.S.-Iran deal must ensure Iran does not acquire nuclear weapons, require Tehran to abandon uranium enrichment entirely, curb its ballistic missile program, and end its support for regional groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthi movement in Yemen – demands that would significantly weaken Iran's regional influence.

(With input from agencies)