Trump says Iran wants to make a deal, he does not

US President Donald Trump said Saturday that Iran wants to negotiate a deal but he is not interested.

"They want to make a deal. I don't," Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social, claiming he met his military objectives "weeks ahead of schedule" and the US had "blown Iran off of the map."

He said Iran's leadership, navy and air force had been eliminated and Tehran has "absolutely no defense."

The remarks came after Trump said Friday that Washington was seeking talks with Iran but claimed there was "nobody to talk to" following weeks of strikes he said decimated Iranian leadership. Earlier in the campaign, Trump said Iran reached out and he agreed to talk, while also saying Iran wanted to negotiate but was "not ready."

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has pushed back against any suggestion that Tehran was seeking an exit from the war, saying previously that Iran "never asked for a ceasefire" and was "ready to defend ourselves as long as it takes."

Trump initially suggested the campaign would last four to five weeks, a timeline he later changed, saying that operations were running "ahead of schedule," though he said Friday he is considering “winding down” the military campaign.

US-Israeli strikes on Iran began Feb. 28 and have reportedly killed 1,300 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, causing casualties and damage to infrastructure.

Fourteen US service members have been killed since the beginning of the campaign.