Ordered Iran strikes to thwart Tehran’s nuclear, missile programs: Trump

2026-03-02 - 19:24

WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he had ordered the attack on Iran to thwart Tehran’s nuclear development and ​a ballistic missile program that he said was growing rapidly. Trump offered ‌his most extensive comments about the war beyond two video messages and a series of brief phone interviews with reporters over the weekend that offered sometimes conflicting objectives in the conflict. He said, ​without providing evidence, that the threat from Iran had been imminent. “This was ​our last best chance to strike ... and eliminate the intolerable threats ⁠posed by this sick and sinister regime,” he said at an event in the ​White House East Room. Trump said military operations were ahead of schedule, without providing details. ​He said he had projected the U.S. campaign would last four to five weeks but that it could go longer. A central premise of the fight was to prevent Iran from developing a ​nuclear weapon, which Tehran has denied doing, and thwart its long-range ballistic missile ​program, Trump said. “An Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would be an intolerable ‌threat to ⁠the Middle East, but also to the American people,” Trump said. Trump said U.S. forces had knocked out 10 Iranian ships – “they’re at the bottom of the sea” – and expressed confidence about how the campaign was going. “Today, the United States military continues to ​carry out large-scale, combat ​operations in Iran ⁠to eliminate the grave threats posed to America by this terrible, terrorist regime,” Trump said. He said the objectives of the war ​included destroying Iran’s missile capabilities, annihilating their navy and stopping ​from them ⁠from having a nuclear weapon. Trump said a third objective was a long-standing U.S. goal, to prevent Iran from supporting militant groups elsewhere in the region. Trump noted the loss of ⁠four American ​service personnel in the fight so far, adding: “In ​their memory, we continue this mission with ferocious, unyielding resolve to crush the threat this terrorist regime poses ​to the American people.”