US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the United States and its allies were making rapid progress in the ongoing conflict with Iran, giving the American military an extraordinary rating for its performance.
Speaking during a meeting with technology executives at the White House, Trump said the campaign had moved quickly in less than a week.
"We’re doing well on the war front, to put it mildly. Somebody said on a scale of 10, where would you rate it? I said about a 15," Trump said. His remarks came as the war entered its fifth day, with fighting continuing across parts of the Middle East and coordinated operations being carried out by US and Israeli forces.
Also Read | 'Not the age of Winston Churchill': Donald Trump lashes out at Keir Starmer over Diego Garcia base delay
Trump says Iranian leadership and missile arsenal being targeted
The US President said the military campaign was significantly weakening Iran’s leadership structure and missile capabilities."We’re in a very strong position now, and their leadership is just rapidly going. Everybody that seems to want to be a leader, they end up dead," Trump said.
According to the Pentagon, the ongoing operations aim to degrade Iran’s military infrastructure and reduce the threat posed by its ballistic missile programme.
Trump also said that Iran’s missile arsenal was being destroyed during the campaign. "Their arsenal of ballistic missiles is being wiped out rapidly," he said. In one of the major developments reported during the conflict, a US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, marking a significant escalation in naval combat.
US reiterates concerns over Iran’s nuclear programme
Trump defended the decision to launch strikes against Iran, saying the operation was intended to stop Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.
Also Read | Mary L. Trump condemns deaths of 165 Iranian schoolgirls: 'I defy anybody to justify this'
"When crazy people have nuclear weapons, bad things happen," the President said. He indicated that the joint US-Israel military campaign would continue. "We will continue forward," Trump said.
US officials say the strikes have already damaged parts of Iran’s military capabilities, including missile systems and naval assets. However, the administration has not yet outlined what strategy will follow once the military campaign ends.
Critics have pointed to Trump’s earlier campaign pledge that the United States would avoid starting new wars. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration is considering what role Washington may play in Iran once the conflict concludes.
