Close to striking deal to avoid Iran conflict: Trump

ABU DHABI: US President Donald Trump said Thursday a deal was close on Iran’s nuclear programme that would avert military action, sending oil prices tumbling, as he boasted of raising “trillions of dollars” on a Gulf tour.

He made the remarks in Qatar before flying on to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the third and final leg of the tour that began in Saudi Arabia.

Trump has said the tour has resulted in trillions of dollars in deals and is hoping to secure more billion-dollar business agreements in the UAE — which has sought to become a hub for technology and artificial intelligence. “We’re not going to be making any nuclear dust in Iran,” Trump said earlier in Doha.

“I think we’re getting close to maybe doing a deal without having to do this,” he said, referring to military action. “You probably read today the story about Iran. It’s sort of agreed to the terms,” Trump said. The US president did not specify which remarks he was referring to, but an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ali Shamkhani, told NBC News Tehran would give up its stocks of highly enriched uranium as part of a deal in which Washington lifts sanctions.

Trump said Iran should “say a big thank you” to Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who had pressed the US leader to avoid military action against his country’s giant neighbour.

Separately, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States would keep the Bagram base in Afghanistan. “We are going to keep the Bagram airbase,” Trump said during his speech at Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, Qatar. He once again claimed that China was present at Bagram, stressing that Washington should have maintained the Bagram base, as it is only an hour away from China.

In Abu Dhabi, UAE, Trump was welcomed by President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, with children waving UAE and US flags and women performing a traditional dance that involves moving their heads from side to side to make their hair “dance”. Afterwards, he toured the opulent Sheikh Zayed mosque, the country’s largest, with its giant white columns and high walls adorned with golden moulding. The UAE president said on Thursday his country planned to invest $1.4 trillion in the US over 10 years, lauding a “strong partnership” that flourished under US President Donald Trump.

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed announced the “UAE’s plan to invest $1.4 trillion in the United States... over the next 10 years,” in fields including technology, artificial intelligence and energy, speaking from the presidential palace in Abu Dhabi alongside Trump. UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri welcomed the visit as a reflection of the UAE leadership’s vision to expand global partnerships and promote economic openness.

Al Marri highlighted the strong presence of American businesses in the UAE, noting that nearly 13,000 US companies operate in the country, with over 66,000 US trademarks registered by the end of 2024. In parallel, more than 115 Emirati companies are active in the United States across sectors such as healthcare, technology, AI, tourism and aviation.

Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, stressed the importance of the US as a critical trade partner, adding that efforts are underway to elevate this partnership to new heights. He noted that the US is the UAE’s largest trading partner outside Asia and sixth-largest globally, accounting for 4pc of the UAE’s total non-oil trade, which reached $32.8 billion in 2024. The bilateral trade is expected to expand further, particularly in sectors like clean energy, sustainable industry, and advanced technology.

Tourism also remains a key pillar of the bilateral relationship. Al Marri reported that UAE hotels hosted approximately 980,200 American visitors in 2024, a 5.4pc increase from the previous year. The 112 weekly flights between the two countries reflect the growing tourism and business exchanges. The ministers expressed strong optimism for the future of UAE-US relations, reaffirming their commitment to creating greater opportunities for the business communities of both nations.

President Trump’s visit stands as a powerful affirmation of the deepening strategic and economic alliance between the United Arab Emirates and the United States of America.