Trump Says US Nears Completion of Military Goals in Iran
"Tonight, I'm pleased to say that these core strategic objectives are nearing completion," Trump said in a nationally televised address outlining the status of Operation Epic Fury.
Over the past four weeks, Trump said US forces had delivered "swift, decisive, overwhelming victories," framing the campaign's trajectory as largely on schedule. He vowed the mission would not halt prematurely.
"I've made clear from the beginning of Operation Epic Fury that we will continue until our objectives are fully achieved. Thanks to the progress we've made, I can say tonight that we are on track to complete all of America's military objectives shortly, very shortly.
"We're going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks. We're going to bring them back to the Stone Ages, where they belong," he said.
The conflict ignited on Feb. 28, when the US and Israel launched a coordinated strike on Iran that has since killed more than 1,340 people — among them then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Tehran has responded with retaliatory drone and missile attacks directed at Israel and Gulf states hosting US military installations. To date, 13 American service members have been killed and approximately 303 others wounded.
Trump paid tribute to the fallen troops, saying they had "laid down their lives in this fight," before adding: "Now, we must honor them by completing the mission for which they gave their lives."
'We have not hit their oil'
Despite the hawkish tone, Trump acknowledged that diplomatic back-channels remain active, confirming that talks with Tehran are "ongoing." He nonetheless issued a stark warning, threatening to strike "each and every one of their electric generating plants very hard, and probably simultaneously" should negotiations collapse.
On the question of Iran's energy infrastructure, Trump drew a sharp distinction between what has — and has not — yet been targeted.
"We have not hit their oil, even though that's the easiest target of all, because it would not give them even a small chance of survival or rebuilding. But we could hit it and it would be gone, and there's not a thing they could do about it," he said.
Shifting focus to the Strait of Hormuz — a critical global oil chokepoint — Trump downplayed its strategic importance to Washington, asserting the US imports "almost no oil" through the waterway and would not rely on it going forward.
"We've beaten and completely decimated Iran. They are decimated both militarily and economically and every other way. And the countries of the world that do receive oil through the Hormuz Strait must take care of that passage. They must cherish it. They must grab it and cherish it," he said.
Trump went further, urging oil-dependent nations to assert control over the passage themselves, telling countries unable to secure fuel to either purchase American oil or "build up some delayed courage" and act unilaterally.
"Protect it, use it for yourselves. Iran has been essentially decimated. The hard part is done. So it should be easy. And in any event, when this conflict is over, the Strait will open up naturally. It will just open up naturally," he said.
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