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Trump offered a strong defense of the war Wednesday night in his first national address since the conflict began more than a month ago.
Two men ride motorcycles near charred wreckage at the site of an Israeli raid in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar) AP
Washington (AFP) – Pres Donald Trump US forces will “finish the job” in Iran soon when “essential strategic objectives are close to completion,” he said, offering a full defense of the war Wednesday night in his first national address since the conflict began more than a month ago.
Trump used his platform to a wide audience to tout the success of US operations in Iran, and to argue that all of Washington’s goals have been met or exceeded so far. He reviewed a timeline of past American involvement in conflicts, noting that the ongoing war in Iran has lasted 32 days by comparison, and appears to be pleading with the public for more time to get the job done.
“In the last four weeks, our armed forces have won swift, decisive, and overwhelming victories on the battlefield,” Trump said, saying US military action had been “so powerful and so great” that “one of the most powerful nations” “is no longer truly a threat” — even as Iran continued its attacks on Israel and its neighbors in the Persian Gulf early Thursday.
Trump spent most of his less than 20-minute speech repeating many of the same things he has said in recent weeks and offering few new details. The speech is unlikely to influence public sentiment at a time when opinion polls show that many Americans feel that the US military has overstepped its bounds in Iran and as gas and oil prices continue to rise.
“Tonight, I am pleased to say that these core strategic objectives are nearing completion,” Trump said. He also acknowledged the US service members who had been killed, adding: “We’re going to finish the job, and we’re going to finish it very quickly. We’re getting very close.”
He did not mention the possibility of sending US ground forces to Iran, nor did he mention NATO, the transatlantic alliance he has harshly criticized for not helping the United States secure the vital Strait of Hormuz. He did not mention negotiating talks with Iran or bring up his April 6 deadline for Iran to reopen the waterway or face severe retaliation from the United States.
Trump encourages other countries to seize the strait
In his speech, Trump appeared to indicate that he had ruled out going to Iran to obtain enriched uranium, even though it was clear that Iran could do so. “You will never have a nuclear weapon.”
“The nuclear sites we destroyed with B-2 bombers were hit so hard that it would take months to get anywhere near nuclear fallout,” Trump said on Wednesday. “And we have extensive satellite surveillance and control. If we see them making a move, even if they move for it, we will hit them hard with missiles again.”
Trump encouraged countries that depend on oil across the Strait of Hormuz to “build up some overdue courage” and go “grab it.”
He also said the fighting would continue for at least a few more weeks.
“We’re going to hit them hard over the next two or three weeks,” Trump said. “We’re going to take them back to the Stone Age, where they belong.”
Oil rose more than 4% and Asian stocks fell after Trump said in his speech that the United States would continue to hit Iran hard.
Trump says: ‘We can take their oil’ before his speech
Trump’s comments in his speech were more moderate than some of his previous statements, including earlier Wednesday during an Easter luncheon at the White House.
Regarding Iran, he told his assembled guests: “We can just take their oil. But you know, I’m not sure people in our country have the patience to do that, which is unfortunate.”
“Yes, they want to see the end of it,” Trump said. “If we stay there, I’d rather just take the oil.” “We could do it easily. I would prefer that. But people in the country kind of say: ‘Just win.’” You win big. Just win. Go home.’ And I’m OK with that too, because we have a lot of oil between Venezuela and ours.
The media was not allowed to watch the president’s remarks during the luncheon, but the White House uploaded a video of the speech online before it was deleted. The White House did not respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press on the video and why it was deleted.
At the luncheon, the president repeated some of his complaints about NATO allies for their reluctance to participate in securing the Strait of Hormuz, while suggesting that China, Japan and South Korea could also step forward to reopen the waterway.
“Let South Korea, you know, we only have 45,000 troops in the danger zone 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 on Wednesday morning, Trump wrote that the “president of the new Iranian regime” wants a ceasefire. It was not clear who the US president was referring to, as Iran still has the same president. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei called Trump’s claims “false and baseless,” according to a report broadcast on Iranian state television.
Hours before Trump’s speech, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian posted a lengthy message in English on his account “What exactly are the interests of the American people served by this war?” books.
There are no signs that Iran is giving up its grip on the Strait of Hormuz
Since the war began on February 28, Trump has offered shifting goals, repeatedly saying it may end soon, while also threatening to expand the scope of the conflict. Thousands of additional American troops are currently heading to the Middle East, and speculation abounds about why. Trump also threatened to attack Iran’s oil export center on Kharg Island.
What adds to the confusion is the role that Israel – which is bombing Iran alongside the United States – might play in any of these scenarios.
Trump is under increasing pressure to end the war, which has driven up the cost of gasoline, food and other goods. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, has risen by more than 40% since the beginning of the war.
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Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Hike reported from Bangkok. Associated Press writers Seung-Min Kim in Washington, Giovanna del Orto in Miami, Farnoush Amiri in New York, and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
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