Trump warns Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei as nuclear talks falter: 'He should be very worried'
"Should the Supreme Leader in Iran be worried right now?"@POTUS: "I would say he should be very worried, yeah, he should be." pic.twitter.com/kMQTzx61V1
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) February 4, 2026
WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump escalated rhetoric against Iran on Wednesday, February 4, warning that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei should be “very worried” as negotiations between Washington and Tehran appeared to be unraveling.
The remarks, delivered during a conversation with 'NBC Nightly News' anchor Tom Llamas, came amid mounting signs that diplomatic talks aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions were stalling.
Trump issues direct warning to Iran
Asked bluntly whether Iran’s supreme leader should be concerned, Trump left little room for ambiguity.
“I would say he should be very worried,” Trump said, noting that Iran was still engaged in negotiations with the United States.
When pressed on whether the administration continued to back Iranian protesters who were challenging the regime, Trump argued that US actions had fundamentally weakened Tehran’s strategic position.
“That country’s a mess right now because of us,” Trump said, claiming US strikes eliminated Iran's nuclear capabilities and shifted the balance of power across the Middle East.
“They were going to have a nuclear weapon within one month,” Trump said, arguing that regional powers had lived in fear of Tehran before the strikes. “That’s not going to happen anymore.”
The president credited the operation with stabilizing the region, claiming Arab nations no longer view Iran as a dominant threat because of US intervention.
Trump warns Iran against restarting nuclear efforts
As the conversation turned to the future of negotiations, Trump suggested that Iran had explored restarting its nuclear efforts- a move he said would trigger swift retaliation.
“I heard that they are,” Trump said when asked whether Iran was attempting to revive its program. “If they do, we’re going to send them right back and do the job again.”
President Trump tells NBC that the U.S. found out about #Iran's regime trying to restart its nuclear program at a new site in a different part of the country, and he told Tehran if you do that, it's game over for you. This is the rationale the Trump administration will use should… pic.twitter.com/XagWvzyssp
— Jason Brodsky (@JasonMBrodsky) February 4, 2026
Trump claimed that US intelligence had detected efforts to establish a new nuclear site after the original facility was destroyed, adding that Iranian officials were warned directly against moving forward.
“I said, ‘You do that, we’re going to do very bad things to you,’” Trump said.
Trump’s comments followed a report from Axios indicating that negotiations between Washington and Tehran were deteriorating.
The Americans should know if they start a war, this time it will be a regional war.
— Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) February 1, 2026
Earlier, Iran's supreme leader had warned that an attack by the US would start a 'regional war'.
