U.S. President Donald Trump said in a televised address on Wednesday night that the U.S. military had nearly accomplished its goals in Iran, but provided no clear timeline for ending the monthlong conflict and warned to bomb the country back into the “Stone Ages.”
Trump said the U.S. had destroyed Iran’s navy and air force, and crippled its ballistic missile and nuclear programs.
But he declined to lay out a concrete plan to wind down the war beyond saying that the U.S. would finish the job “very fast.”
“We have all the cards,” Trump said from the White House in his first primetime address since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on February 28. “They have none.”
He avoided addressing key unresolved issues, including the fate of Iran’s enriched uranium and access to the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil supplies that Iran has effectively shut.
The strait, he said, would open “naturally” once the war ended.
Trump’s 19-minute address broke little new ground and offered scant reassurance to Americans and U.S. allies who are feeling increasing pain at the gas pump and growing impatience with the war.
Stocks fell, the dollar firmed and oil rose shortly after Trump’s comments, reflecting widespread sentiment that the conflict is likely to drag on for some time.
Trumps’ Warning
While portraying Iran as militarily neutered, Trump also said on Wednesday night that the U.S. would hit the nation hard for another two or three weeks.
If the country’s new leaders did not negotiate satisfactorily, he said, the U.S. would begin attacking the nation’s electricity generation and oil infrastructure.
As Trump spoke, air sirens blared across both Doha and Tel Aviv, illustrating how the Islamic Republic is still able to wreak havoc across the Middle East, despite taking heavy losses.
“We’re going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks,” Trump said. “We’re going to bring them back to the Stone Ages where they belong.”
“In the meantime, discussions are ongoing,” he added. “Yet if during this period of time, no deal is made, we have our eyes on key targets.”
A day earlier, Trump told reporters Tehran did not have to make a deal as a prerequisite for the conflict to wind down.
Trump briefly acknowledged concerns over rising fuel prices but said they would soon fall, blaming Iran for the increases. He also urged countries reliant on Gulf oil to lead efforts to reopen the strait, while allies like Britain and France said they would help but only after hostilities have ceased.
While the president on Wednesday briefly acknowledged growing concerns among Americans that the war is making gasoline unaffordable, he insisted that prices would soon go down and that the increases were mainly Iran’s fault.
Trump has expressed anger that NATO allies have not offered to help open the strait, even threatening to withdraw from the 76-year-old alliance.
While he had told Reuters earlier in the day that he would discuss the U.S. relationship with NATO in his speech, he did not mention the bloc.
Public Wants War Over
In a Reuters/Ipsos survey conducted Friday through Sunday, 60% of voters said they disapproved of the war, while 35% approved. Some 66% of respondents said the U.S. should work to end its involvement in the war quickly, even if that meant not achieving the goals set out by the administration.
Trump has signalled both escalation and de-escalation, leaving even close advisers uncertain, and his speech offered little clarity. Officials have discussed seizing Iran’s enriched uranium and key sites like parts of its coastline and Kharg Island, while additional troops heading to the Gulf suggest he is keeping military options open.
Trump asked Americans to “keep this conflict in perspective,” noting prior wars in Iraq, Vietnam and Korea had required far longer U.S. involvement.
(With inputs from Reuters)
