Trump says US and Israel defeated Iran, calls war short
Donald Trump (photo: Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump has stated that the operation by the US and Israel against Iran is a short-term action. According to the American leader, victory has largely already been achieved, citing a White House broadcast.
"Our country is doing really well. I mean, at a level that nobody thought. We took a little excursion because we felt like we had to do that to get rid of some evil. I think you’ll see it’s going to be a short-term excursion," Trump said.
Speaking before Republicans in the House of Representatives, the US President noted that victory has largely already been achieved, but final victory is not yet here.
"We’ve already won in many ways, but we haven’t won enough. We go forward, more determined than ever to achieve ultimate victory that will end this long running danger once and for all," he emphasized.
Trump also added that the US, together with Israel, defeated the enemy, demonstrating superiority in technical skills and military strength. According to him, Iranian drones and missiles were completely destroyed, and the Iranian fleet has disappeared.
The president said that everything was lying at the bottom of the ocean, 46 ships, and asked if they could believe it.
Furthermore, he reported that he got a little angry when the military, instead of capturing ships, began sinking them. In response, Trump was told that sinking ships is more fun.
Summarizing, Trump added that if he had not launched the operation, Iran would have attacked the US within a week, and within two weeks would have already possessed nuclear weapons.
Updated at 01:30
Almost immediately after his speech to the Republicans, Trump held a press conference for journalists. During it, he stated that the US military objectives have been practically achieved and that all forces in Iran have been destroyed.
"And some people could say they're pretty well complete. We've wiped every single force in Iran out very completely," the US President claimed.
Incidentally, during this very appearance, he said that the US had destroyed 51 Iranian ships (although just an hour earlier, he had mentioned 46). He added that Washington is also aware of all the facilities where Iran makes drones, so these facilities are being struck one after another.
Summing up, Trump stated that over 5,000 strikes have already been carried out against Iranian targets, emphasizing that the US could destroy all remaining targets in one day.
In response to a clarifying question about whether the war against Iran could end within a week or a few days, the US leader replied that he thinks it could.
Operation against Iran
On February 28, the US, together with Israel, began attacking Iran to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions and destroy the country's missile arsenal.
Against this backdrop, Iran effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, leading to a rise in global oil prices. Specifically, on the morning of March 9, Brent crude was priced at $116 per barrel.
Almost immediately after this, the US President responded to the price increase, stating that this was the price for peace and security.
Later that same day, the oil price climbed even higher, but Trump caused the value to drop by declaring that the war with Iran was close to completion.
