US Senate majority leader backs regime change aim if US strikes Iran

US Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday that if Washington moves forward with military strikes against Iran, he believes the objective should include regime change.

"In my view, if you're going to do something there, you better well make it about getting new leadership and regime change," Thune told reporters at the Capitol.

His remarks came as US and Iranian delegations sat down for a third round of nuclear negotiations in Geneva, Switzerland.

Thune said he doesn't think President Donald Trump has made a final determination on whether to authorize strikes by US forces currently positioned in the region.

"I think they're gaming out what contingencies might look like and what's in our national security interest. And of course, obviously, first and foremost is to prevent them from having a nuclear capability," he added.

After the talks concluded, Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, the mediator, reported "significant progress" in the negotiations between Iran and the US.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, for his part, said the two countries "moved closer to agreement" on certain issues, and that seriousness was evident on both sides.