By WILL WEISSERT, JON GAMBRELL and DAVID RISING Associated Press
President Donald Trump said U.S. forces will "finish the job" in Iran soon as "core strategic objectives are nearing completion," offering a full-throated defense of the war Wednesday night in his first national address since the conflict began more than a month ago.
Trump used his platform before a wide audience to tout the success of the U.S. operations in Iran and argue that all of Washington's objectives have so far been met or exceeded. He ticked through a timeline of past American involvement in conflicts and noted that the ongoing war in Iran had lasted 32 days in comparison, seeming to appeal to the public for more time to achieve the mission.
"In these past four weeks our armed forces have delivered swift, decisive, overwhelming victories on the battlefield," Trump said, saying the U.S. military action had been "so powerful, so brilliant" that "one of the most powerful countries" is "really no longer a threat" — even as Iran kept up its attacks on Israel and Persian Gulf neighbors early Thursday.
Trump spent much of an address that lasted just under 20 minutes repeating many of the same things he said in recent weeks and providing few new details. The speech appeared unlikely to move the needle of public sentiment at a time when polling shows many Americans feel the U.S. military has gone too far in Iran and as gas and oil prices remain high.
"Tonight, I'm pleased to say that these core strategic objectives are nearing completion," Trump said. He also acknowledged American service members who had been killed and added, "We are going to finish the job, and we're going to finish it very fast. We're getting very close."
He didn't mention the possibility of sending U.S. ground troops into Iran, nor did he mention NATO, the trans-Atlantic alliance he has railed against for not helping the U.S. secure the critical Strait of Hormuz. He didn't mention negotiation talks with Iran or bring up his April 6 deadline for Iran to reopen the waterway or face severe retaliation from the U.S.
Trump encourages other countries to go take the Strait
In his speech, Trump seemed to suggest he had ruled out going into Iran to get the enriched uranium, though he has been clear that the country could "never have a nuclear weapon."
"The nuclear sites that we obliterated with the B-2 bombers have been hit so hard that it would take months to get near the nuclear dust," Trump said Wednesday. "And we have it under intense satellite surveillance and control. If we see them make a move, even a move for it, we'll hit them with missiles very hard again."
Trump encouraged countries reliant on oil through the Strait of Hormuz to "build some delayed courage" and go "take it."
He also said that the fighting would continue for at least a few more weeks.
"We are 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," Trump said.
Oil rose more than 4% and Asian stocks fell after Trump said in his address that the U.S. will continue to hit Iran very hard.
Trump says 'we could just take their oil' before speech
Trump's comments in his address were more measured than some of his previous remarks, including earlier Wednesday at a White House Easter lunch.
Of Iran, he told his assembled guests: "We could just take their oil. But you know, I'm not sure that the people in our country have the patience to do that, which is unfortunate."
"Yeah, they want to see it end. If we stayed there, I prefer just to take the oil," Trump said. "We could do it so easily. I would prefer that. But people in the country sort of say: 'Just win. You're winning so big. Just win. Come home.' And I'm OK with that, too, because we have a lot of oil between Venezuela and our oil."
The media was not permitted to watch the president's remarks at the lunch, but the White House uploaded video of the speech online before taking it down. The White House did not return requests for comment from The Associated Press on the video and why it was taken down.
In the lunch, the president reiterated some of his complaints about NATO allies for their reluctance to get involved in securing the Strait of Hormuz while suggesting that China, Japan and South Korea could also step up to reopen the waterway.
"Let South Korea, you know, we only have 45,000 soldiers in harm's way over there, right next to a nuclear force -- let South Korea do it," Trump said of efforts to reopen the strait. "Let Japan do it. They get 90% of their oil from the strait. Let China do it."
In a social media post Wednesday morning, Trump wrote that "Iran's New Regime President" wanted a ceasefire. It wasn't clear to whom the U.S. president was referring since Iran still has the same president. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, called Trump's claim "false and baseless," according to a report on Iranian state television.
Hours before Trump's address, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian posted a lengthy letter in English on his X account appealing to U.S. citizens and stressing that his country had pursued negotiations before the U.S. withdrew from that path. "Exactly which of the American people's interests are truly being served by this war?" he wrote.
No signs of Iran relinquishing its grip on the Strait of Hormuz
Since the war began on Feb. 28, Trump has offered shifting objectives and repeatedly has said it could be over soon while also threatening to widen the conflict. Thousands of additional U.S. troops are currently heading to the Middle East, and speculation abounds about why. Trump has also threatened to attack Iran's Kharg Island oil export hub.
Adding to the confusion is what role Israel — which has been bombing Iran alongside the U.S. — might play in any of these scenarios.
Trump has been under growing pressure to end the war that has been pushing up the cost of gasoline, food and other goods. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, is up more than 40% since the start of the war.