It’s a big chess game at a very high level.

It’s a very high-level chance—the highest—and I’m dealing with very smart players. These are smart people. They don’t get there [otherwise].

When you deal with some of these people, you know who you’re dealing with. High-level intellect. High—very high-IQ people.

These are really smart people and violent people and vicious people and some very nice people.

Some are very nice but they turn violent.

Because of the war, I want to be here. I feel like I have to be here.

And so we’ve requested that we delay it a month or so.

I'm looking forward to being with him — we have a very good relationship.

All my life I've been hearing about the United States and Cuba: "When will the United States do it?"

I do believe I’ll have the honor of taking Cuba. That would be good. That’s a big honor.

Taking Cuba — in some form. I mean, whether I free it or take it, I can do anything I want with it.

My last contact with Mr. Witkoff was prior to his employer's decision to kill diplomacy with another illegal military attack on Iran.

Any claim to the contrary appears geared solely to mislead oil traders and the public.

I'm sure Russians are providing Iran with Shahed drones.

We saw some details from one of the Shaheds, which was destroyed in a Middle Eastern country, and it had Russian details. I think that means that Russians also helped them.

Like Iranians helped them at the very beginning of the war when they gave them Shaheds.

There are currently three groups there — three groups of our experts, very professional experts, military experts.

And they will look at their systems of defending. So now it's up to the countries how to involve our expertise and how to share the information with them.

If we get this information, of course, 100%, we will give them our feedback and our help where we can.

It's nothing new. I have heard a lot of different messages during these last four years. We are not afraid of such messages.

We have lived with such messages every day during the last four years—a minimum of four years, but mostly 12 years.

He wanted to meet and to speak about the future.

He understands that we don't have relations with the Iranians because Iran helped the Russians with the Shaheds and not only that.

I think that a lot of people in Iran want to live a normal life and be free, and it's difficult with the attitude the regime has towards the people.

No, we haven't spoken really.

He has what I need, and I have what he needs, so I'm ready for this important dialogue.

Russian aggression is still the same, and it's a pity that we don't see the power in the world that can really stop Putin.

It's a pity that still now not everybody puts sanctions on Russia, which then doesn't stop the oil and gas benefits from energy sales, and Russia definitely spends all of this on weapons and then attacks us.

As you see now they give intelligence and drones to Iran.

Russia wants to occupy all of us and to destroy our identity. They don't see us like a sovereign country, but our people are stronger than Putin's wishes.

We obviously have to take everything that President Trump says seriously. I think the key now is to focus on the alliance and what we do. We are a defensive alliance, which means that we don't do military attacks as such.

I think those countries that have the capacity and the will to help the United States will do that and should do that.

We have to understand that the situation in the Middle East and in the Gulf region right now is extremely serious.