Trump addresses the nation about the war with Iran

President Donald Trump addressed the nation on Wednesday evening, providing an update on the Iran war during his first televised speech since the joint strikes with Israel over a month ago. “Over the past four weeks, our armed forces have achieved rapid, decisive, and overwhelming victories on the battlefield,” declared President Trump at the beginning of his speech. With this address, the American president aimed to communicate clear objectives of the war to the American public. The goal was to reconcile weeks of shifting goals and often contradictory messages regarding whether he was reducing military operations or intensifying them. Meanwhile, Iran continued its attacks on Israel and Gulf neighbors while airstrikes pounded Tehran. President Trump did not mention the imminent deadline he had set for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz or face attacks on its energy infrastructure by American forces. In his call for patience to American readers, Mr. Trump reviewed the timeline of American involvement in previous conflicts. He referenced World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and Iraq, underscoring America’s over 20-year commitment to Vietnam. Conversely, the intervention in Iran lasted 32 days, he argued, and was “so powerful, so brilliant” that “one of the most powerful countries” no longer poses a threat. Thousands of additional American soldiers were deployed to the Middle East this week, but Trump did not mention them, nor did he directly mention NATO, criticizing its members for not helping secure the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier on Wednesday, the president stated that he was seriously considering withdrawing the U.S. from NATO, escalating his criticism of European leaders. The war caused oil prices to surge as Iran effectively closed the strait, a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman through which approximately a fifth of the world’s oil transits. On Wednesday night, Trump asserted that Americans “do not need” the strait and that countries requiring it “should take and cherish it.” A recent AP-NORC poll revealed that 6 in 10 American adults believe that the Trump administration’s actions in Iran had gone too far. “Trump baselessly claims the Iranian army is ‘decimated'” While Donald Trump claimed that “Iran has been virtually decimated” and other nations’ efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz “should be easy,” independent observer data does not corroborate this statement. Although there has been a decrease in Iranian strikes, a weakened Iranian army remains a resilient adversary. Iran went from over 100 strikes on March 1, the second day of the war, to no more than 50 strikes per day since March 6, according to data from the independent Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a U.S.-based group that tracks global conflicts. In the group’s methodology, a “strike” may include multiple individual strikes at the same location on the same day. Experts suggest that any short-term decrease could indicate Iran deliberately rationing its missiles and drones, rather than running out of firepower. Just before Trump began speaking, the United Arab Emirates warned of a missile threat from Iran. A series of explosions was then heard in Dubai as air defenses sought to intercept Iranian missiles. “We could just take the oil” During comments on Wednesday afternoon during an Easter lunch, the president said about Iran: “We could just take their oil. But you know, I’m not sure the people in our country have the patience to do that, which is unfortunate.” Media were not allowed to attend the president’s remarks at the lunch, but the White House briefly posted a video of the speech online before pulling it down. The White House did not respond to Associated Press requests for comments on the video and reasons for its removal. In a social media post on Wednesday morning, Trump maintained a bellicose tone, demanding that Iran stop blocking the Strait of Hormuz—this vital waterway for global oil supply—or else the U.S. would bomb the Islamic Republic “back to the Stone Age.”