Trump signals willingness to talk to new Iranian leadership as strikes continue

Washington — President Trump said Sunday that helium is consenting to talk with the caller enactment successful Iran pursuing the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's longtime leader, who was killed successful Israeli airstrikes connected Saturday.

"They privation to talk, and I person agreed to talk, truthful I volition beryllium talking to them. They should person done it sooner. They should person fixed what was precise applicable and casual to bash sooner. They waited excessively long," Mr. Trump told The Atlantic successful a telephone telephone connected Sunday morning. 

A elder White House authoritative said aboriginal successful the time that the president volition talk with the Iranians "eventually," but "[f]or now, Operation Epic Fury continues unabated," referring to the ongoing bombing run by the U.S. and Israel.

Khamenei's decease has led to questions astir who volition present instrumentality power, with nary wide successor successful place. Dozens much apical Iranian officials were besides killed successful strikes, further complicating the way forward. Mr. Trump and different officials person urged the Iranian radical to overthrow the authorities altogether, but the likelihood of a wide uprising succeeding is acold from certain.

Sen. Tom Cotton, the apical Republican connected the Senate Intelligence Committee, said connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected Sunday that "I don't deliberation anyone tin springiness you a elemental answer" connected who volition win Khamenei, who had been successful powerfulness since 1989. 

"There's astir apt a batch of jockeying wrong of Iran close now. They person a precise consultative, deliberative process to regenerate the ultimate leader. There's a crushed wherefore helium didn't privation to person a wide succession program successful place. It's hard to bash that erstwhile the United States is pummeling their enactment each infinitesimal of the day," Cotton said. 

"I'm sure, though, that determination are besides immoderate leaders wrong of Iran who mightiness beryllium jockeying to audition for the relation of Iran's Delcy Rodriguez," Cotton added, referring to the interim president of Venezuela, who took powerfulness with the enactment of the U.S. aft American forces captured Nicolás Maduro successful January. 

The U.S. and Iran had been engaged successful weeks of talks implicit the country's atomic programme successful the lead-up to the opening of the strikes connected Saturday. U.S. officials, including the president, had expressed vexation that the Iranians were not acquiescing to demands that they wantonness their atomic programme and prosecute successful talks implicit their rocket capableness and enactment for proxy groups successful the region.

In his speech with The Atlantic, the president said that galore of the officials progressive successful negotiations person been killed.

"Most of those radical are gone. Some of the radical we were dealing with are gone, due to the fact that that was a large — that was a large hit," helium said. "They should person done it sooner … They could person made a deal. They should've done it sooner. They played excessively cute."

Kristin Brown contributed to this report.