President Donald Trump addressed the nation Saturday evening after the U.S. military executed airstrikes against three sites in Iran with nuclear enrichment facilities amid rising geopolitical conflict over Iran’s nuclear program.
“Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,” Trump said in a speech from a podium at the White House. “It’s Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.”
Standing behind a stern-faced Trump as he spoke were Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror,” Trump said.
“There will be either peace or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than what we have witnessed over the last eight days,” Trump said.
Trump’s address came hours after he disclosed via a post on his Truth Social platform that the U.S. military had executed airstrikes on three sites in Iran with nuclear enrichment facilities: Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. Trump asserted that the effort had been a “very successful attack” and that “all planes are now outside Iran air space.”
“We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home. Congratulations to our great American Warriors. There is not another military in the World that could have done this. NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” the President wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform.
Trump’s move sparked immediate controversy for the lack of congressional approval for such a material decision regarding U.S. foreign policy. The boldness of the targeted airstrike has the potential to further destabilize the region that has been up-ended by the war in Gaza that is approaching its second anniversary in October.
The U.S. airstrikes come a week after Israel also conducted aggressive bombing campaign designed to take out Iran’s ability to enrich uranium to the degree necessary to manufacture nuclear weapons. Those strikes left more than 400 casualties and key Iranian leaders dead. The incursion immediately ratcheted tension in the already volatile region.
Trump made it clear that the U.S. coordinated with Israel in executing Saturday’s bombing raids. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on live TV minutes before Trump’s White House address, thanking him profusely for his support and his “courage” in taking the military step in Iran.
Trump cast the action as necessary to quash a longstanding threat against the U.S. and Israel.
“For 40 years, Iran has been saying, Death to America, Death to Israel. They have been killing our people, blowing off their arms, blowing off their legs, with roadside bombs. That was their specialty. We lost over 1,000 people and hundreds of 1000s throughout the Middle East, around the world have died as a direct result of the hate in particular so many were killed by their general Qasem Soleimani,” Trump said. “I decided a long time ago that I would not let this happen. It will not continue. I want to thank and congratulate Prime Minister Netanyahu. We worked as a team like our absolute team has ever worked before, and we’ve gone a long way.”
Like Netanyahu, Trump bragged about the U.S.’s military prowess in targeting key sites with B-2 bombs capable of penetrating fortified structures.
“There’s no military in the world that could have done what we did tonight, not even close. It has never been a military that could do what took place just a little while ago tomorrow,” Trump said. “I want to congratulate the great American patriots who flew those magnitude machines tonight and all of the United States military on an operation the likes of which the world has not seen in many, many decades.”