Large banner featuring Trump's face is displayed on Justice Department headquarters

WASHINGTON (AP) — A large banner featuring Donald Trump's face was hung on the exterior of Justice Department headquarters on Thursday in a physical display of the Republican president's efforts to exert power over the law enforcement agency that once investigated him.

While Trump banners have been hung outside other agencies across Washington, the decision to place one on the storied Justice Department building amounted to a striking symbol of the erosion of the department's tradition of independence from White House control.

The banner, hung between two columns on one corner of the building, says, “Make America Safe Again,” a slogan used by the administration to tout its efforts to clamp down on illegal immigration and violent crime.

Attorney General Pam Bondi has postured herself as the president's chief supporter and protector, eschewing the approach of predecessors who sought to maintain an arms-length distance from the White House to protect the impartiality of investigations and prosecutions.

Trump officials have rejected accusations that they have weaponized the Justice Department for political purposes, saying the Biden administration was the one that politicized law enforcement with two federal criminal cases against Trump that were abandoned after he won the 2024 election.

The Justice Department in a statement Thursday said it is proud to “celebrate 250 years of our great country and our historic work to make America safe again at President Trump’s direction.”

The Trump administration has opened investigations into a number of the president's perceived enemies, amplifying concerns that the agency is being used to exact revenge on his political foes.

Federal prosecutors brought charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey that were later dismissed, and separately sought to indict several Democratic lawmakers in connection with a video in which they urged U.S. military members to resist “illegal orders."

In a social media post, Comey said the banner was “sickening to see,” adding that the administration "forgot to cover the inscription” on one side of the building that says, “Where law ends tyranny begins."

The department is also investigating Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell over congressional testimony and Democratic Minnesota officials over whether they obstructed federal immigration enforcement through public statements.

A banner showing President Donald Trump is hung from the Department of Justice, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

A banner showing President Donald Trump is hung from the Department of Justice, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

A banner showing President Donald Trump is hung from the Department of Justice, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

Members of the National Guard walk past a banner with President Donald Trump hanging on the Department of Justice, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran held annual military drills with Russia on Thursday as a second American aircraft carrier drew closer to the Middle East, with both the United States and Iran signaling they are prepared for war if talks on Tehran's nuclear program fizzle out.

President Donald Trump said Thursday he believes 10 to 15 days is “enough time” for Iran to reach a deal. But the talks have been deadlocked for years, and Iran has refused to discuss wider U.S. and Israeli demands that it scale back its missile program and sever ties to armed groups. Indirect talks held in recent weeks made little visible progress, and one or both sides could be buying time for final war preparations.

Iran’s theocracy is more vulnerable than ever following 12 days of Israeli and U.S. strikes on its nuclear sites and military last year, as well as mass protests in January that were violently suppressed.

In a letter to the U.N. Security Council on Thursday, Amir Saeid Iravani, the Iranian ambassador to the U.N., said that while Iran does not seek “tension or war and will not initiate a war,” any U.S. aggression will be responded to “decisively and proportionately.”

“In such circumstances, all bases, facilities, and assets of the hostile force in the region would constitute legitimate targets in the context of Iran’s defensive response,” Iravani said.

Earlier this week, Iran conducted a drill that involved live-fire in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow opening of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world's traded oil passes.

Tensions are also rising inside Iran, as mourners hold ceremonies honoring slain protesters 40 days after their killing by security forces. Some gatherings have seen anti-government chants despite threats from authorities.

The movements of additional American warships and airplanes, with the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier near the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea, don't guarantee a U.S. strike on Iran — but they bolster Trump's ability to carry out one should he choose to do so.

He has so far held off on striking Iran after setting red lines over the killing of peaceful protesters and mass executions, while reengaging in nuclear talks that were disrupted by the war in June.

Iran has agreed to draw up a written proposal to address U.S. concerns raised during this week’s indirect nuclear talks in Geneva, according to a senior U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The official said top national security officials gathered Wednesday to discuss Iran, and were briefed that the “full forces” needed to carry out potential military action are expected to be in place by mid-March. The official did not provide a timeline for when Iran is expected to deliver its written response.

“It’s proven to be, over the years, not easy to make a meaningful deal with Iran, and we have to make a meaningful deal. Otherwise, bad things happen,” Trump said Thursday.

With the U.S. military presence in the region mounting, one senior regional government official said he has stressed to Iranian officials in private conversations that Trump has proven that his rhetoric should be taken at face value and that he’s serious about his threat to carry out a strike if Iran doesn’t offer adequate concessions.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss delicate diplomatic conversations, said he has advised the Iranians to look to how Trump has dealt with other international issues and draw lessons on how it should move forward.

The official added that he’s made to case to the Trump administration it could draw concessions from Iran in the near-term if it focuses on nuclear issues and leaves the push on Tehran to scale back its ballistic missile program and support for proxy group for later.

The official also said that Trump ordering a limited strike aimed at pressuring Iran could backfire and lead to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei withdrawing Iran from the talks.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged his nation's citizens to immediately leave Iran as “within a few, a dozen, or even a few dozen hours, the possibility of evacuation will be out of the question.” He did not elaborate, and the Polish Embassy in Tehran did not appear to be drawing down its staff.

The German military said that it had moved “a mid-two digit number of non-mission critical personnel” out of a base in northern Iraq because of the current situation in the region and in line with its partners’ actions. It said that some troops remain to help keep the multinational camp running in Irbil, where they train Iraqi forces.

“This week, another 50 U.S. combat aircraft — F-35s, F-22s, and F-16s — were ordered to the region, supplementing the hundreds deployed to bases in the Arab Gulf states,” the New York-based Soufan Center think tank wrote. “The deployments reinforce Trump’s threat — restated on a nearly daily basis — to proceed with a major air and missile campaign on the regime if talks fail.”

Iranian forces and Russian sailors conducted the annual drills in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean aimed at “upgrading operational coordination as well as exchange of military experiences,” Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported.

Footage released by Iran showed members of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard's naval special forces board a vessel in the exercise. Those forces are believed to have been used in the past to seize vessels in key international waterways.

Iran also issued a rocket-fire warning to pilots in the region, suggesting it planned to launch anti-ship missiles in the exercise.

Meanwhile, tracking data showed the Ford off the coast of Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean midday Wednesday, meaning the carrier could transit through Gibraltar and potentially station in the eastern Mediterranean with its supporting guided-missile destroyers.

It would likely take more than a week for the Ford to be off the coast of Iran.

Israel is making its own preparations for possible Iranian missile strikes in response to any U.S. action.

“We are prepared for any scenario,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday, adding that if Iran attacks Israel, “they will experience a response they cannot even imagine.”

Netanyahu, who met with Trump last week, has long pushed for tougher U.S. action against Iran and says any deal should not only end its nuclear program but curb its missile arsenal and force it to cut ties with militant groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.

Iran has said the current talks should only focus on its nuclear program, and that it hasn't been enriching uranium since the U.S. and Israeli strikes last summer. Trump said at the time that the strikes had “obliterated” Iran's nuclear sites, but the exact damage is unknown as Tehran has barred international inspectors.

Iran has always insisted its nuclear program is peaceful. The U.S. and others suspect it is aimed at eventually developing weapons. Israel is widely believed to have nuclear weapons but has neither confirmed nor denied that.

Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran; Claudia Ciobanu in Warsaw, Poland; Geir Moulson in Berlin; Farnoush Amiri in New York; and Aamer Madhani and Michelle Price in Washington, contributed to this report.

People pray at the graves of Iranian soldiers who were killed during 1980-88 Iraq-Iran war, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaks during a bilateral meeting between Switzerland and Iran, in Geneva, Switzerland, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026 (Cyril Zingaro/Keystone via AP)

In this image provided by Sepahnews of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on Feb. 16, 2026, shows troops standing at attention during the guard's drill in the Persian Gulf on Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (Sepahnews via AP)

This image provided Thursday Feb. 19, 2026 by the Iranian military and dated Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2025, shows navy ships conducting operations during a join drill by Iranian and Russian forces in the Indian Ocean. (Masoud Nazari Mehrabi/Iranian Army via AP)

This image provided Thursday Feb. 19, 2026 by the Iranian military and dand dated Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2025, shows navy ships conducting operations during a join drill by Iranian and Russian forces in the Indian Ocean.(Masoud Nazari Mehrabi/Iranian Army via AP)

This image provided Thursday Feb. 19, 2026 by the Iranian military and dated Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2025, shows navy ships conducting operations during a join drill by Iranian and Russian forces in the Indian Ocean.(Masoud Nazari Mehrabi/Iranian Army via AP)

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks during a joint news conference with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest, Hungary, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)

FILE - In this photo provided by the U.S. Navy, the USS Gerald R. Ford embarked on the first of its sea trials to test various state-of-the-art systems on its own power for the first time, April 8, 2017, from Newport News, Va. (Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ridge Leoni/U.S. Navy via AP, File)