Trump asked me to mediate with Iran, says PM

NEW YORK (AFP) – Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan said that US President Donald Trump had asked him to mediate with Iran to defuse tensions. PM Imran met Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on the sidelines of this week's United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) before which he visited Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia, whom he said had made the same request. “Trump asked me that if we could de-escalate the situation and maybe come up with another deal,” PM Khan told journalist at the gathering of world leaders in New York. “Yes, we did convey this, and yes, we´re trying our best,” he said. “I immediately spoke to President Rouhani yesterday after the meeting with President Trump. I can't say anything right now more than this, except that we’re trying and mediating,” he added. The prime minister also said that the Saudi crown prince had also asked me to talk to the Iranian president. Speculation has been rife about a possible face-to-face between Trump and Rouhani on the sidelines of the general assembly, with France's Emmanuel Macron trying to broker what would be a historic meeting. At a separate briefing to reporters where Trump spoke on Iran, he said, "They would like to negotiate. It certainly makes sense but we haven´t agreed to that yet." Asked about Macron's involvement, he responded, "He's also talking to us, a number of people are. "So is Prime Minster Khan of Pakistan. A lot of people, Chancellor Merkel just now, Chancellor Merkel, and she's very much involved, we have a lot of people involved. A lot of people would like to get us to the table."