From 38m agoIran supreme leader involved in talks to end the war, says TrumpDonald Trump said Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is involved in talks to end the war and that he would “like to meet him”.Khamenei has not been seen in public since the Iran war began, and has only addressed the nation through written statements read out by television anchors. US officials have claimed Khamenei was incapacitated or undergoing treatment for severe injuries sustained in the same bombing that killed his father, Ali Khamenei, on the first day of the war.“He’s involved. Absolutely,” the US president told the New York Post. “Yeah, I think they have a lot of respect for him.”When asked about Khamenei’s condition, Trump said: “I don’t know, I haven’t had the privilege of meeting him.”He added: “If you believe the stories he is, you know, missing a lot of different parts.”Trump was asked whether he would meet with Khamenei, he replied: “Yeah, I’d like to meet him. I’d like to meet everybody … We probably will meet at some point, depending on how it all works out.”Key events51s ago'We don't need boots on the ground now,' says Trump17m agoTrump says he was 'perturbed' by Netanyahu 'constantly fighting with Lebanon'29m agoTrump: Iran has agreed to have no nuclear weapon38m agoIran supreme leader involved in talks to end the war, says Trump50m agoOpening summary: Trump claims Iran agreed to no nuclear weapon and supreme leader involved in talks'We don't need boots on the ground now,' says TrumpTrump said the US “does not need” its forces on the ground in Iran, claiming his war was going well without the need to send troops.“We don’t need boots on the ground now,” he told the New York Post. “We wiped out much of their [Iran’s] military with just bombing. We didn’t put anybody in the ground.”Trump says he was 'perturbed' by Netanyahu 'constantly fighting with Lebanon'Trump seemed to have confirmed reports that he had a heated phone call with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he apparently swore at him and said he was “fucking crazy”.When asked by the New York Post whether he spoke to Netanyahu in those terms, Trump said: “I did, I wouldn’t say angry, I was a little bit perturbed at his constantly fighting with Lebanon.“You know, at some point I said, Bibi, we’ve got to stop this. We’ve got to stop it. But I have a very good relationship [with Netanyahu]. We’ve done well together.”Donald Trump points his finger towards Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, in December. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/ReutersTrump: Iran has agreed to have no nuclear weaponCommenting on Iran’s nuclear programme, Trump claimed Tehran has agreed to not obtain a nuclear weapon.He told the New York Post: “We can’t let them have a nuclear weapon, and they’ve already agreed they’re not going to have a nuclear weapon.”When pressed further, he said: “Oh, yeah, they’ve agreed to that. I mean, they can change their mind, but that was one of the things they had to agree. They’ve agreed to that. That was the big thing.”There was no immediate comment from Iran, but the nuclear issue has long remained a major bone of contention in talks between Tehran and Washington.US secretary of state Marco Rubio told a congressional hearing yesterday that Iran has agreed to negotiate aspects of its nuclear programme that it had refused to discuss even a month ago. You can read more on that here:Iran supreme leader involved in talks to end the war, says TrumpDonald Trump said Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is involved in talks to end the war and that he would “like to meet him”.Khamenei has not been seen in public since the Iran war began, and has only addressed the nation through written statements read out by television anchors. US officials have claimed Khamenei was incapacitated or undergoing treatment for severe injuries sustained in the same bombing that killed his father, Ali Khamenei, on the first day of the war.“He’s involved. Absolutely,” the US president told the New York Post. “Yeah, I think they have a lot of respect for him.”When asked about Khamenei’s condition, Trump said: “I don’t know, I haven’t had the privilege of meeting him.”He added: “If you believe the stories he is, you know, missing a lot of different parts.”Trump was asked whether he would meet with Khamenei, he replied: “Yeah, I’d like to meet him. I’d like to meet everybody … We probably will meet at some point, depending on how it all works out.”Opening summary: Trump claims Iran agreed to no nuclear weapon and supreme leader involved in talksHello and welcome to the Guardian’s continuing coverage of the crisis in the Middle East.Donald Trump has claimed Iran has agreed it will not have a nuclear weapon and that the country’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is involved in negotiations with the US.The bold claims were made during an interview on the New York Post’s Pod Force One podcast published this morning, as violence erupted in the Gulf once again after the US and Iran exchanged a series of strikes.A man walks past a billboard carrying a picture of Iran’ supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei in Tehran, Iran. Photograph: AFP/Getty ImagesThe US president also suggested that he might meet Khamenei “at some point” and that he would “like to meet him”. US officials have long claimed Khamenei sustained serious injuries in the same bombing that killed his father, Ali Khamenei, on the first day of the war.Trump’s remarks follow comments made by the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, at a congressional hearing yesterday that there were indications Khamenei was taking a bigger part in peace talks despite not being seen publicly since the war began on 28 February. Rubio will appear before the House committee on foreign affairs for another hearing today.Also today: