Iran faces narrowing window of diplomacy amid mounting pressure from the U.S.

(CBS, KYMA/KECY) - We're down to 14 days now in the two weeks President Donald Trump is giving himself to decide whether to attack Iran as he's allowing the Iranians time to go the diplomatic route.

However, Iran's foreign minister says no negotiations with the U.S. while the war with Israel goes on.
That war is now in a second week.

Iran did participate in talks Friday, but with European diplomats.

In Tehran, protestors chanted, "No surrender, no compromise, fight with America!" A contrast to Iran's top diplomat, Abbas Aragchi, who met with European diplomats in Geneva Friday. They're trying a last shot at convincing Iran to limit its nuclear program.

It is not yet clear if that means embracing President Trump's offer for direct talks. Iran called those off after U.S.-ally Israel started bombing.

Any deal could only be signed off on by Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei, with diplomatic sources telling CBS News he's in hiding, dodging Israeli assassination threats, which makes it hard for his own government officials to get in touch.

"Face the Nation" moderator and CBS News' chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Brennan spoke with Karim Sadjadpour, an Iran expert at the Carnegie Endowment, who asked him who would succeed Khamenei if he was gone, to which Sadjadpour said, "I think the next very powerful leader of Iran is very unlikely to be wearing a turban, much more likely to be someone who is wearing military garb or someone who has a background in either the intelligence or security forces."

Brennan followed up by asking Sadjadpour why Khamenei turned down a diplomatic deal that Trump offered, with Sadjadpour answered saying, "For most dictators, when you're given a choice between unconditional surrender, which is what President Trump demanded of Iran's supreme leader or continued defiance, they usually choose option two."

To watch more of Brennan's report on this story, click here.