HAMILTON, Canada

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Iran is "running out of launchers" as American and Israeli strikes continued to pound the country for a fourth consecutive day.

Trump told POLITICO in a phone interview that Iranian forces may continue launching attacks for some time, but argued their ability to fight back was weakening rapidly.

"They're running out and they're running out of areas to shoot them, because they're being decimated," he said. "They're running out of launchers."

He also noted that Washington had ample supplies of weaponry and American arms manufacturers had been mobilized to accelerate production.

"We have unlimited of the middle- and upper middle- ammunition and things. We save it and we build it," he said, adding that defense companies are "under emergency orders" to increase output.

As he told POLITICO that the attacks could last for weeks or be over in a few days, Trump also signaled Washington's willingness to negotiate with the next leadership in Iran at the end of the attacks.

Saying that 49 senior Iranian leaders had already been killed in the strikes, Trump said it is "not too late" for talks.

"New ones are emerging. A lot of people want the job. Some of them would be very good," he added.

Tension has escalated across the region when the US and Israel launched a large-scale attack Saturday against Iran, killing nearly 800 people, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Gulf countries, which are home to US assets.