The president of the United States, Donald Trump, stated that Iran has not yet accepted an agreement to end the war because its leaders are “strong” and “proud,” although he assured that eventually “they have no choice” but to negotiate with Washington, according to an interview with NBC News.

"They are strong, proud, there are things they never thought they would do and that they will have to do. They have no choice, and it takes a while," Trump told journalist Kristen Welker, referring to the conversations between the two countries.

According to NBC News, the president defended the pace of negotiations and rejected criticism from those demanding a quick solution to the conflict, which this week entered its fourth month of war.

Trump defends negotiations with Iran

Trump compared the situation to the Vietnam War and maintained that resolving a confrontation of this magnitude takes time.

In addition, he reiterated that the United States has destroyed much of Iran's military capabilities, including drone factories, launch platforms and missile production centers.

However, he assured that Tehran still retains part of its military arsenal, which he estimated to be between 21% and 22% of its original capacity.

Iran demands access to frozen funds

For its part, a senior official from the Islamic Republic of Iran told CNN that any agreement with Washington will depend on the Trump administration authorizing the release of $24 billion in frozen Iranian funds.

“If he (Trump) wants to reach an agreement with Iran, this $24 billion is a test of the trust that Iran wants to have with Trump; this is a test that the United States must overcome and the way will be opened,” the official said.

The United States and Iran have for weeks exchanged drafts of a possible peace agreement through Pakistani mediators. However, both sides maintain contradictory positions on the status of the talks: while Tehran maintains that they are at a standstill, Trump insists that negotiations are still moving forward and has even suggested that an agreement could be announced over the weekend.