President Donald Trump said he hoped there would be no need for more strikes like the ones he ordered late Saturday on Iran’s nuclear sites — but he said he was prepared to act again if needed.
In a four-minute address broadcast from the White House, Trump called the U.S. bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran “a spectacular military success” and said they were essential for curbing the danger posed by the Iranian regime. He also said now was the time for Iran to accept conditions for peace or risk further attacks.
“Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,” Trump said. “Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.”
Trump delivered the speech — with Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth behind him — about two hours after he announced the strikes on Iran. They came nine days after Israel initiated an offensive against Iran’s nuclear program and just over a day after Trump said he would decide whether to join the conflict “within two weeks.”
Trump praised the Israeli military and Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that the pair had worked together “like perhaps no team has ever worked before” — a potential dig at those who feared there was growing daylight between the two world leaders.
“We’ve gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel,” Trump said.
“I want to thank the Israeli military for the wonderful job they’ve done, and most importantly, I want to congratulate the great American patriots who flew those magnificent machines tonight and all of the United States military on an operation the likes of which the world has not seen in many, many decades,” he added. “Hopefully we will no longer need their services in this capacity. I hope that’s so.”
But then he said again that he would be prepared to act if he deemed it necessary — and indicated that a next attack would be more substantial.
“There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left,” Trump said.
“Tonight’s was the most difficult of them all, by far and perhaps the most lethal, but if peace does not come quickly, we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill,” he added. “Most of them can be taken out in a matter of minutes.”
