Washington, Nov. 6 -- US President Donald Trump has indicated that he would rather not destroy what remains of Iran but acknowledged that he may have to, adopting a more hesitant line than his previous threats against Tehran following his Republican Party's setback in the US midterm elections.

Addressing reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday (local time), Trump noted that a final decision on whether the war was close to escalating was imminent. "I would rather not destroy the rest of the country if possible, but maybe I'll have to," he stated, adding, "You'll know soon enough."

He described the ultimate choice in terms of permanence. "We'll make a decision, do we want to go further and just certify it by certifying it, meaning where ...