U.S. President Donald Trump said he was prepared to talk to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani but that there was always a chance of U.S. military action against the Islamic Republic.

"So Iran is a place that was extremely hostile when I first came into office," Trump told British television station ITV. "They were a terrorist nation number one in the world at that time and probably maybe are today."

When asked if he thought he would need to take military action, he said: "There's always a chance. Do I want to? No. I'd rather not. But there's always a chance."

He said, when asked, that he was prepared to talk to Rouhani: "Yeah of course. I would much rather talk."