2 hours ago
5
The pursuing is the transcript of the interrogation with Mike Waltz, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, that aired connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected June 21, 2026.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We're joined present by UN Ambassador Mike Waltz, who joins america from New York. Good morning, and blessed Father's Day.
UNITED STATES AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS MICHAEL WALTZ: Hey, bully morning. Thank you, and blessed Father's Day to each the large fathers retired there. Strong men marque beardown families. Thanks
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, Ambassador, the warfare is unpopular, arsenic you conscionable heard, but however it ends matters arsenic you know. CBS's Olivia Gazis is reporting that elder members of Trump's nationalist information team, including Secretary Rubio, stay doubtful Iran volition comply with this deal's terms. The CIA manager presented Trump with quality indicating inconsistencies with Iran's commitments. So, if adjacent the president's ain squad doubts this is simply a win. How bash you merchantability this to the public?
AMB. WALTZ: Well, Margaret, I'll spell backmost to different polling that shows that the American radical perfectly hold with President Trump that Iran tin ne'er person a atomic weapon. Of course, we each privation little state prices, they are lower, beneath $4 and falling with much enactment to do. They're cheaper than nether the Biden administration. We'll retrieve conscionable a fewer months agone erstwhile analysts were saying lipid would beryllium upwards of $150 to $200 dollars a barrel. And it is not- it's present nether $80. Of course, everyone wants cheaper energy, but what President Trump is doing is striking that equilibrium with besides ensuring that a genocidal authorities that nary of america spot tin ne'er person a atomic weapon, and that process is underway close present arsenic we speak.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, the American radical besides don't privation Iran to person a atomic weapon, we spot that successful our polling, but they're unconvinced that this interim statement achieves that. But, to the constituent you were conscionable making astir the regime, the Vice President is sitting close present down closed doors, look to look with Speaker Ghalibaf. This is simply a antheral who oversaw the rocket programme successful Iran erstwhile helium was a commandant successful the IRGC Air Force. He has bragged, determination are recordings of him doing so, astir his ain relation successful cracking down connected protesters, describing however arrogant helium was astir having personally beaten them with woody sticks. So, we went from President Trump telling protesters that assistance is connected the mode to present sitting crossed negotiating with 1 of the men who bushed them. Aren't we offering the authorities a lifeline?
AMB. WALTZ: Well, fig one, this is simply a measurement guardant that nary different medication has ever been capable to do, and that's person nonstop talks. None of these elder members of this genocidal authorities are bully guys by immoderate means, they surely wouldn't walk an FBI inheritance check. No 1 expects that. But, astatine the extremity of the day, the administration, our administration, is taking a pragmatic approach. This is who the authorities has enactment guardant to woody with, and they remain, and we stay focused connected the extremity of nary atomic weapons period. And what we've seen successful the past is argumentation drift successful presumption of what our aims are. The President is laser focused, the American people, and not conscionable the American people, the full world, with UN Security Council resolution, aft UN Security Council solution for decades saying Iran can't person a nuke, and we request to springiness this process a chance. We request to springiness bid a chance, and arsenic the Vice President has said, possibly we tin yet crook the leafage to a caller Middle East. Like President Trump did with the Abraham Accords his archetypal term--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah.
AMB. WALTZ: --let's springiness this a accidental his 2nd term. But, Margaret, I privation to beryllium precise clear, arsenic Secretary Rubio said, we cognize the benignant of radical that we're dealing with. We person condemned them for sidesplitting 40 to 50 1000 of their ain citizens successful conscionable a weekend.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah.
AMB. WALTZ: They clasp Americans hostage. They've ne'er returned the remains of Bob Levinson, a erstwhile contractor from 20 years ago. We cognize who--
MARGARET BRENNAN: We person six Americans hostage close now.
(CROSSTALK)
AMB. WALTZ: --the quality with- but the quality with the Obama medication is going to beryllium each astir verification. No trust, and each verify immoderate they enactment down connected paper.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah.
AMB. WALTZ: And we know- and the different piece, too, is it's backed by credible subject unit that the erstwhile administrations took disconnected the table, removed their leverage. We are going successful with a devastated Iranian economy, a devastated Iranian military, and possibly with immoderate carrots--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well--
AMB. WALTZ: --that volition beryllium verified and wage for perf- show that we'll spot a amended woody this time.
MARGARET BRENNAN: I cognize the families of hostages admit you mentioning them. Many were disappointed that their families were not included successful immoderate benignant of goodwill gesture. There are six Americans being held, but backmost to the deal, the Vice President indicated immoderate of the--
AMB. WALTZ: --Margaret, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, that's a precise important point. And I privation those families to cognize their loved ones are not forgotten, and this president's grounds successful getting Americans location is unparalleled from immoderate president successful modern American history. So, I conscionable privation them to perceive that large and clear. This president has his oculus connected the ball.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well--
AMB. WALTZ: Sometimes these talks handle- are handled retired of the nationalist eye.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator Tom Cotton said this volition let Iran to merchantability its lipid based connected pre-war accumulation levels. It volition get betwixt $150 and $200 cardinal each azygous day, up to $6 cardinal per month. What bash you deliberation these guys are going to walk that wealth on?
AMB. WALTZ: Well, first, it's that wealth is not going into immoderate benignant of slush fund.
MARGARET BRENNAN: That's lipid revenue.
AMB. WALTZ: It is going to places that we tin still- we tin inactive monitor. If it's not going to the places that were agreed upon, we tin perfectly crook it backmost off. The President tin enactment the blockade backmost in. He conscionable said this morning, if Iran doesn't get Hezbollah nether power to halt attacking Israel, that volition beryllium a violation, and helium volition spell backmost to, again, the cardinal constituent present is we person that subject option, and each options connected the table. Biden, Obama, nary of the predecessors person that successful a precise credible mode similar President Trump does.
MARGARET BRENNAN: But the President himself says helium wants to avert economical disaster, and that we're weeks distant from a substance shortage, truthful helium seems to beryllium saying that helium wouldn't needfully privation to instrumentality to struggle if that's the outgo of it. So, the credible usage of unit seems successful question.
(CROSSTALK)
AMB. WALTZ: But no, but there's immoderate nuance there, Margaret, that successful the United States we are producing much than we ever have. Venezuela is present producing. Countries similar Guyana successful South America person full caller finds that we're present helping. So, we're really getting much lipid and state connected the market, but immoderate of our allies perfectly person been affected, peculiarly successful Asia, and the president has that successful caput arsenic he's negotiating. But helium besides has seen successful the UN, for example, the full satellite condemning this regime, a UN grounds 143 countries for its amerciable mining of the straits--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah.
AMB. WALTZ: --and for its effort to clasp the satellite system hostage. So they're diplomatically isolated, they're economically devastated, they're militarily--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well--
AMB. WALTZ: --devastated, and contempt what you work successful the headlines, oregon immoderate prognosticating, we are going into these negotiations from a presumption of strength.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, the Vice President described rapprochement this morning, and helium indicated that immoderate of the details of what was agreed to are not written down. He referred to a gentleman's agreement. That operation was besides briefed to reporters by an medication official. And present is what the president said.
(BEGIN VT)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: If they don't grant the agreement, oregon immoderate things aren't adjacent mentioned successful the agreement, it's a memorandum of understanding, but we person an knowing of definite things without penning it.
(END VT)
MARGARET BRENNAN: Are determination classified annexes oregon portions of this that person not been made public, and volition they beryllium shared with Congress?
AMB. WALTZ: Margaret, not, not to my knowledge. And I'll conscionable spell backmost to your constituent on--
MARGARET BRENNAN: What's the Gentleman's Agreement?
AMB. WALTZ: --what's connected paper, and what's being discussed. This is- this is an ongoing dialog that we've ne'er earlier had straight with the Iranians. And I'll conscionable accidental this from a batch of, from a batch of the doubts that you played successful your opening, this is the aforesaid squad that got each of the hostages retired of the tunnels of Gaza, that cipher said could beryllium done. They got a cease occurrence successful place, not perfect, that nary 1 could- said could beryllium done, that took attraction of the Maduro regime, he's successful jailhouse close down the thoroughfare present successful New York with- with nary casualties, and Venezuela present connected a amended track. So, I wouldn't uncertainty this president oregon this team, and there's going to beryllium immoderate bumps successful the roadworthy for sure. No medication has been capable to get this acold from a presumption of strength--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah.
AMB. WALTZ: --and truthful you cognize I person afloat assurance that we'll get to a deal, and arsenic the Vice President said, perhaps, possibly springiness this a chance, and we tin person a transformed Middle East. No 1 would person thought, adjacent a twelvemonth ago, that you'd person Israel and the UAE moving unneurotic militarily to support each different arsenic a effect of the adjacent improvement of the Abraham Accords--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, they were benignant of forced to. But also--
AMB. WALTZ: --we're successful time 1 of the method talks, and- and Margaret, by the way, determination are- determination are method experts from the Department of Energy that are sitting down close present to get to the bottommost of the down blending, the moving of the uranium, the highly enriched uranium, and however that volition technically beryllium done. So we person to springiness that process a accidental arsenic well.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, that's bully to perceive that the US has its ain atomic experts connected site. The White House hadn't said that. Is determination thing other you tin archer us? Who's going to support talking for 60 days?
(CROSSTALK)
AMB. WALTZ: Well, again, these are- these are our Department of Energy experts, our PhDs successful physics, a batch smarter than- that I am, that are getting into those nitty gritty details, and- but the large representation is the president's absorption connected Iran not having a atomic program, and close present it's destroyed, and if they- and we're going to support it destroyed--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well--
AMB. WALTZ: --and person it permanently destroyed, arsenic opposed to the past, wherever it was ongoing, and we were fundamentally bribing them to not continue.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well--
AMB. WALTZ: It's a wholly antithetic dialog dynamic.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, that stockpile was shipped to Russia and the JCPOA. There were limits. We privation to spot what limits these US negotiators are really capable to secure, and we'll ticker that diplomacy. Thank you precise much, Ambassador Waltz.
English (US) ·