US President Donald Trump has told congressional Republicans that the war with Iran could be over “pretty quickly”, as he defended the military campaign and outlined Washington’s objectives in the conflict.
The United States and Israel launched the campaign against Iran on February 28, with large-scale air and missile strikes on Iranian military infrastructure, including air-defence systems, missile launchers and naval assets. The first day of the operation killed Iran’s then supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
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The war has now entered its second week, and in his latest speech, Trump has highlighted what he described as the successes of Operation Epic Fury and suggested that it could end soon.
Here are some key takeaways from his remarks.
Trump calls Iran’s operation a ‘short-term excursion’
Trump framed the recent military action against Iran as a “little excursion” that was necessary to eliminate “some evil”.
He said that due to the incredible capabilities of the US military, this engagement would be strictly a “short-term excursion”.
While this action had caused a “little pause” in the economy, he said, it was not a big one, and the economy would quickly surge and “blow it away”.
The war will end ‘pretty quickly’
Trump also declared that the war on Iran is “going to be finished pretty quickly”.
He explained that such a rapid conclusion would be due to the highly effective and “brilliant work” of the US military, noting the following progress:
- The military has already wiped out roughly “80 percent” of Iran’s missile launchers, reducing its capabilities to a “trickle”, with the remaining launchers being eliminated very quickly.
- “The missiles have been largely knocked out… the drones have been knocked out, and we’re hitting where they make the drones,” he said.
- “We’ve struck over 5,000 targets today, some of them very major targets, and we’ve left some of the most important targets for later in case we need to do it,” Trump said, adding that other targets could include electricity facilities.
He emphasised that as soon as this operation is finished, it will result in a “much safer world”.
Trump also claimed that the US military sank “46 top-of-the-line” Iranian naval ships over three and a half days.
Recounting a conversation with a military official, Trump said he had asked why the ships were sunk instead of captured.
“’We could have used it. Why did we sink them?’” Trump had apparently asked the official. “He said, ‘It’s more fun to sink them’.
“They like sinking them better. They say it’s safer to sink them. I guess it’s probably true.”
The US prevented an imminent attack ‘within a week’ on US and allies
Trump also asserted that the US had to strike Iran because Tehran had been preparing to attack the US, though neither the US president, nor anyone else in his administration, has presented any evidence to back the claim.
“Within a week, they were going to attack us, 100 percent. They were ready,” Trump said.
He also claimed that Iran had missiles aimed at neutral Middle Eastern nations, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, which ultimately sided with the US.
“I think they were looking to take over the Middle East, because when you look, and we have pretty good proof, all of those missiles were… aimed at Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE,” he added.
Trump celebrated the killing of leadership
He celebrated the killing of several Iranian leaders, stating that they are “gone” and that “nobody has any idea who the people are that are going to lead that country”.
He connected this speech to his first-term operation that assassinated Qassem Soleimani, whom he called the “father of the roadside bomb”.
Soleimani was the longtime commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)’s Quds Force, and was widely seen as a key architect of Iran’s regional network of allied groups.
‘We haven’t won enough’
Trump said the US could now declare its military campaign against Iran a success, but the US is going to go further.
“We’ve already won in many ways, but we haven’t won enough,” Trump said.
“We go forward more determined than ever to achieve ultimate victory that will end this long-running danger once and for all. Forty-seven years, it should have been done a long time ago,” he added.
‘Disappointed’ Mojtaba Khamenei is Iran’s new supreme leader
Trump says he is “disappointed” that Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father, Ali Khamenei, as the supreme leader of the country.
“We think it’s going to lead to just more of the same problem for the country,” Trump said.
When asked whether the new leader had a target on his back, Trump said it would be “inappropriate” to say. Israel has said it will attempt to assassinate any new Iranian leader chosen to replace Ali Khamenei.
Trump had earlier declined to provide details about his plans for dealing with Mojtaba Khamenei. “Not going to tell you. I’m not happy with him,” he said.