President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United States would be “out of Iran pretty quickly” and reserved the right to carry out targeted “spot hits” if circumstances demanded, as he prepared to address the nation on the conflict’s path forward.
Speaking to Reuters ahead of his primetime address scheduled for 9 pm local time, Trump acknowledged uncertainty about the war’s precise endpoint. “I can’t tell you exactly… We’re going to be out pretty quickly,” he said, with the conflict now entering its fifth week amid rising oil prices and growing domestic pressure over an exit strategy.
Trump also said he was “absolutely” considering pulling the United States out of NATO, intending to signal that stance during his evening address. He cited what he described as the alliance’s failure to support US objectives in Iran. “They haven’t been friends when we needed them,” Trump said. “We’ve never asked them for much. It’s a one-way street.”
On the core stated objective of the campaign, Trump asserted that US military action had permanently degraded Iran’s nuclear capabilities. “They won’t have a nuclear weapon because they are incapable of that now, and then I’ll leave, and I’ll take everybody with me, and if we have to we’ll come back to do spot hits,” he said. Iran has consistently denied seeking nuclear weapons, maintaining its programme is entirely civilian in nature.
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Trump expressed optimism about reaching a deal with Iran’s new leadership following airstrikes that killed then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. “We have had full regime change,” he said, adding that an agreement was likely as “they don’t want to be blasted anymore.” He noted that regime change was not his original objective but had occurred as a consequence of the war. On Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, Trump said it was “so far underground” that it posed no immediate concern, while adding that the US would continue monitoring it through satellite surveillance. Tehran has disputed Trump’s characterisation of direct negotiations, saying only limited messages have been exchanged through intermediaries.
Iran Signals Ceasefire Desire, Trump Sets Hormuz Condition
Trump’s remarks followed his earlier claim that Iran’s new leadership had reached out seeking a ceasefire. He made clear Washington would only entertain the proposal if the Strait of Hormuz a chokepoint through which roughly 20 percent of global oil supply transits is fully reopened. “We will consider when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear,” Trump said.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps pushed back, stating the strait remained “firmly and dominantly” under its control and would not be reopened “to the enemies of this nation,” dismissing Trump’s remarks as “ridiculous displays.”
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Washington has warned of potential military escalation if Iran rejects a proposed 15-point ceasefire framework, which calls for halting nuclear weapons ambitions, ending uranium enrichment, and reopening the strait. On Tuesday, Trump had said the US could withdraw within two to three weeks even without a formal deal, as the conflict continues to claim thousands of lives, destabilise the region, and disrupt global energy markets.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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