U.S. President Donald Trump highlighted achievements related to the Iran war in a national address. However, contrary to earlier expectations, a declaration to end the war was not made.
At 9 p.m. Eastern time on the 1st (10 a.m. on the 2nd Korea time), President Trump delivered a national address for about 20 minutes. Earlier, the White House had said Trump would speak to provide the latest updates on the Iran war.
Trump opened by congratulating NASA on launching the "Artemis II" rocket. He said, "Our brave astronauts successfully launched," adding, "Now they will go farther than any crewed rocket."
Trump devoted the entire address to underscoring the results of military operations so far, saying that the goals of the Iran war were nearly achieved.
He said, "As the military operation Epic Fury against Iran, the world's No. 1 state sponsor of terrorism, reaches its first month, we have executed swiftly over the past four weeks and achieved unprecedented results," adding, "Iran's navy and air force have been decimated, and most of the regime's leaders, who are mostly terrorists, have been killed."
He emphasized, "Their weapons production facilities and rocket launchers have all been destroyed with almost nothing left, and losses on this scale are unprecedented in the history of war."
He also mentioned the operation to invade Venezuela. Trump said, "It's been five years since I returned to office after my previous term, and during my first term I rebuilt the military into the world's strongest and then took control of Venezuela in a matter of minutes," adding, "We are now building a cooperative relationship with Venezuela like a joint venture."
Trump said he had pledged since his first run in 2015 to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, stressing that for 47 years Iran's regime has pressured the United States and Israel. He went on to cite ▲ the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut ▲ the 2000 attack on the USS Cole ▲ the 2023 Israel-Hamas war ▲ the 2025 bloody crackdown on Iran's anti-government protests, saying the possession of nuclear weapons by a violent regime cannot be tolerated.
Regarding his unilateral withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) during his previous term, he said, "If I had not withdrawn from the agreement, Iran would have produced weapons of mass murder long ago," adding, "I am fixing what other presidents could not do." He continued, "I prefer negotiations, but Iran rejected everything," adding, "So in June we completely struck Iran's nuclear facilities with the Midnight Hammer operation."
Trump urged countries that rely on crude exports through the Strait of Hormuz to directly move to reopen the strait. He said, "The United States imports no oil from this strait," adding, "Buy oil from the United States. Or, though it's very late, move to open the strait yourselves." He added, "The hard part is already over, and once the conflict ends the strait will open automatically," and "Oil prices will also automatically come down."
Before the address, there had been speculation that a declaration to end the war with Iran would be issued, but no concrete plan was revealed. He said, "Over the next two to three weeks, we will continue heavy bombardment of Iran," adding, "We will send Iran back to the Stone Age, and if talks break down, we will concentrate strikes on Iran's power plants."