Trump says regime change in Iran could be possible

WASHINGTON/FORT BRAGG, North Carolina, Feb 13 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday embraced possible regime change in Iran and declared there will soon be “tremendous power” in the Middle East, as the Pentagon sent a second aircraft carrier to the region.

Trump’s military moves and tough words come even as Washington and Tehran seek to revive diplomacy over Tehran’s long-running nuclear dispute with the West.

A source briefed on the matter told Reuters that US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will hold talks with Iran on Tuesday in Geneva, with representatives from Oman acting as mediators. The source said Witkoff and Kushner will also meet with Russian and Ukrainian officials on Tuesday in Geneva as part of the US campaign to end the war in Ukraine.

When asked if he wanted regime change in Iran, Trump responded that “it seems like that would be the best thing that could happen.” He declined to share who he wanted to take charge of Iran, but said “there are people.”

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“For 47 years, they’ve been talking and talking and talking,” Trump said after a military event at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. “Meanwhile, we’ve lost a lot of lives while they were talking. We got our legs blown off, our arms blown off, our faces blown off. We’ve been like this for a long time.” Washington wants nuclear talks with Iran to also cover the country’s ballistic missiles, support for armed groups in the region and the treatment of the Iranian people. Iran has said it is prepared to discuss restrictions on its nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions, but has ruled out linking the issue to missiles.

Trump has threatened to attack Iran if a deal is not reached, while Tehran has vowed to retaliate, stoking fears of a broader war as the United States builds up forces in the Middle East. The United States attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities last year.

When asked what was left to attack the nuclear sites, Trump said “dust.” And he added: “If we do it, it would be the least of the mission, but we will probably take over what is left.”

LONG DEPLOYMENTS

U.S. officials described the complex process of moving military assets. The aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford will join the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, several guided-missile destroyers, fighter jets and surveillance aircraft that have been deployed to the Middle East in recent weeks. The Gerald R. Ford, the United States’ newest aircraft carrier and the world’s largest, has been operating in the Caribbean with its escort ships and participated in operations in Venezuela earlier this year.

Asked Friday why a second aircraft carrier was headed to the Middle East, Trump said: “In case we don’t get a deal, we’ll need it…if we need it, we’ll have it ready.”

One of the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it would take at least a week for the aircraft carrier to reach the Middle East.

The United States most recently had two aircraft carriers in the area last year, when it carried out strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities in June.

With only 11 aircraft carriers in the US military’s arsenal, they are a scarce resource and their schedules are often set well in advance.

In a statement, the US Southern Command, which oversees US military operations in Latin America, said it would continue to focus on countering “illicit activities and malign actors in the Western Hemisphere.”

Basically, the Ford has been at sea since June 2025. It was supposed to be operating in Europe before being abruptly moved to the Caribbean in November.

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While aircraft carrier deployments typically last nine months, it is not uncommon for them to extend during periods of heightened U.S. military activity.

Navy officials have long warned that prolonged deployments at sea can damage ships’ morale.

Officials said the administration had considered sending another aircraft carrier, the Bush, to the Middle East, but it was in the process of certification and would take more than a month to arrive in the Middle East.

The Ford, which has a nuclear reactor on board, can accommodate more than 75 military aircraft, including fighter jets such as the F-18 Super Hornet and the E-2 Hawkeye, which can act as an early warning system.

The Ford also has a sophisticated radar that can help monitor air traffic and navigation.

Support ships, such as the Normandy Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers Thomas Hudner, Ramage, Carney and Roosevelt, include surface-to-air, surface-to-surface and anti-submarine warfare capabilities.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; Steve Holland at Fort Bragg, additional reporting by Hyunsu Yim and Bo Erickson; Editing by Shri Navaratnam, William Maclean, Philippa Fletcher and Jonathan Oatis)