President Trump vowed on Tuesday to look for common ground with his French counterpart in dealing with Iran but made no commitment to stick with the nuclear agreement he described as "insane" and "ridiculous."
Receiving French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron for a state dinner at the White House, Trump repeated his criticism of the agreement to freeze Iran's nuclear program, saying it doesn't address Tehran's missile program or its attempts to stir up unrest in the region.
The first state dinner of the Trump White House is taking place 15 months after the inauguration, relatively late compared to previous administrations which typically hosted elaborate ceremonial sitdowns by the end of their first years in office.
Tuesday's dinner is a relatively low-key affair, with few celebrities and big Washington names on the guest list.
The dinner comes after Trump and Macron called for more talks with Iran, but gave no clear sign if Trump will pull the U.S. out of the existing nuclear deal with Tehran.
Earlier in the day, Trump issued a warning to Iran. “If they restart their nuclear program, they will have bigger problems than they have ever had before,” Trump said during a meeting with Macron in the Oval Office. "You can mark it down."
Macron also wants Trump to keep American forces in northern Syria to avoid the risk of giving up the country to the Assad regime and Iran.
Trump told reporters that “I'd love to get out” of Syria where the United States has 2,000 U.S. troops seeking to eradicate the Islamic State terror group.
Trump said the United States had spent seven trillion dollars in the Middle East over an 18-year period and has “less than nothing” to show for it.