President Donald Trump stated Monday that he will maintain the ongoing military operations in Iran to honor the four American service members killed by Tehran’s retaliatory attacks.
Trump’s comments came during the president’s first public comments following Saturday morning’s offensive. He released two prerecorded videos over the weekend, giving brief updates on the operation, including confirming the killing of Iran’s former supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, by an Israeli airstrike.
“Today, we grieve for the four heroic American service members who have been killed in action, and send our love and support to their families,” the president said during a Medal of Honor ceremony at the White House. “In their memory, we continue this mission with ferocious, unyielding resolve to crush the threat this terrorist regime poses to the American people, and a threat, indeed, it is.
“We have the strongest and most powerful, by far, military in the world, and we will easily prevail,” he said. “We’re already substantially ahead of our time projections, but whatever the time is, it’s okay. Right from the beginning, we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that. We’ll do it.”
Trump proceeded to outline four goals for the operation, none of which included installing a new government in Tehran.
First, according to Trump, the United States will seek to “destroy Iran’s missile capabilities” and prevent them from producing new ones. Second, the president said was “annihilating their Navy.” The U.S. has already sunk some 10 Iranian Naval vessels since Saturday.
“Third, we’re ensuring that the world’s No. 1 sponsor of terror can never obtain a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. “And finally, we’re ensuring that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm, fund, and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders.”
War Secretary Pete Hegseth made similar comments Monday morning at a rare, joint press conference alongside Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“Everybody was behind us,” he said. “They just didn’t have the courage to say so. An Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would be an intolerable threat to the Middle East, but also to the American people. Our country itself would be under threat, and it was very nearly under threat.”
Trump additionally honored the following three Army veterans, two posthumously, at Monday’s event.
Retired Command Sgt. Maj. Terry Richardson is credited with saving the lives of 85 service members during the Vietnam War.
Staff Sgt. Michael Ollis was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2013. He is being honored for valorous action on the field of combat.
Master Sgt. Roderick Edmonds died in 1985. He was taken as a prisoner of war in World War II and refused to cooperate with Nazi soldiers in identifying Jewish soldiers.
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You can watch Trump’s remarks in full below.
