Trump issues series of harsh messages to Iran: 'We have largely destroyed their armies'

U.S. President Donald Trump made assessments regarding the tension with Iran during a signing ceremony held at the White House.

Arguing that they have dealt a heavy blow to the Iranian military, Trump said, "We are hitting them very hard. Until just yesterday, we had a deal, everything was finished, but then they immediately broke that deal because they realized there was something in the agreement they didn't like. Their minds work differently, but we will not tolerate this."

Stating that they carried out new attacks against Iran during the night, Trump said, "We are eliminating their entire ability to interfere with the Strait of Hormuz. I think at the end of the day, we will have the whole situation under control."

Claiming that the Iranian administration also treats its own citizens poorly, Trump said, "As far as we can determine, they have killed 52,000 protesters so far; it could be more than that, but at least 52,000 protesters have been killed. This is a truly terrible situation. We will get this under control very quickly."

"WE ARE RE-IMPOSING THE BLOCKADE"

When asked by reporters about the possibility of a diplomatic solution with Iran, Trump stated that he had not reached such a conclusion yet and expressed the following:

"But tonight we are hitting them very hard. As you know, we are attacking them. We have a tremendous amount of ammunition. We have numbers we haven't had for years, and we are hitting them very hard; this will continue and we will see what happens. However, we are destroying all their offensive capabilities and we control the strait. We are re-imposing the blockade. And this blockade does not apply to anyone other than Iran. In other words, no one doing business with Iran can pass, everyone else will be able to pass. So this is a very strong blockade. The blockade was probably even more effective than hitting them, but I think the combination of the two is what is really finishing the job."

Despite this, Trump also expressed his belief that it could be possible to reach a new agreement with Iran in the future.

"THEY HAVE NO POWER AGAINST US"

Recalling that the Vietnam War lasted 19 years, Trump said that the military tension with Iran has only been going on for four months.

Trump assessed, "Within a period of 1 month, we took out their navy. We took out their air force. The air force is gone. We destroyed most of their missiles and UAVs. We collapsed their UAV production capacity by about 92 percent. We destroyed their missile production capacity by 89 percent. Yes, they might have a little capacity left, but they have no power against us. This is now almost just a military conflict."

"THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY HAVE BEEN DOING FOR 47 YEARS"

Claiming that Iran withdrew from agreed-upon deals at the last minute, Trump said, "This is exactly what they have been doing for 47 years. The only difference is that no one has negotiated like me. Actually, this job should have been finished long ago by George Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and the U.S. Presidents before them."

Holding the Iranian administration and Qasem Soleimani responsible for the deaths of many people, Trump said, "They didn't just kill people. When you see a young former soldier walking around with no legs, no arms, and a face that has been terribly damaged, know that it was Iran that did this."

"THE STRAIT IS OPEN AND WILL REMAIN OPEN"

Stating that the Strait of Hormuz will remain open, Trump said, "The strait is open and will remain open. We have reduced their capacity very significantly, but you know, they will fight for a while longer. Our military has done a great job."

Making statements regarding Iran's nuclear program, Trump said, "I am telling everyone the essence of the matter, and I will continue to say it as long as they want to listen: Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. If we hadn't bombed them with B2 bombers, they would have had a nuclear weapon long ago. Within 1 month from the day we bombed them, they would have had the nuclear weapon in their hands. If they had a nuclear weapon, Israel and probably the Middle East would not exist right now. You saw them send missiles to 5 different countries that didn't even know they were involved. Because they are completely unscrupulous. They are crazy and we will not tolerate this."

"THE COUNTRIES WE PROTECT WILL PAY US"

Stating that the U.S. provides security to many countries in the region against Iran, Trump said that the cost of this must be covered.

Trump said, "We are spending money, and the countries we help will pay us in return for the protection we provide them."

Citing Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait as examples, Trump said, "You know, we have more oil than any other country in the world. When you add Venezuela, which is an incredible place, we have more than 50 percent of the world's supply. We don't need this, but we do it in terms of protecting our allies; including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. We protect them all and we have done a very effective job."

"WE HAVE LARGELY DESTROYED IRAN'S MILITARY"

Arguing that Iran had a strong military until four months ago, Trump said, "Now they don't even have a navy. 159 of their ships are underwater. They had a total of 159 ships and right now every one of them is at the bottom of the water. They had 230 planes, they are all gone. They had amazing radars, they are all gone. They had amazing anti-aircraft guns, they are all gone. Unfortunately, their leadership cadre is also completely gone. All of their first-tier leaders are dead. All of their second-tier leaders are dead. Some of the third-tier leaders we are dealing with now are already gone."

Criticizing the reports of some media outlets regarding the situation in Iran, Trump said, "You watch them and you hear them say, 'Actually, aren't they doing pretty well?' Let me tell you clearly; they currently have inflation of over 300 percent. 4 months ago their inflation was 5 percent. Now it could even be 350 percent. They made a deal, they probably broke it 10 times and killed many people. They killed our people, but look at what they did to the protesters: they massacred 52,000 protesters. They couldn't do any of this during my term. That's why we put them in a position where they can't do anything militarily. They have nothing but fake news in their hands. Because that fake news media would rather see us lose than win the war, which in a way is truly treason. This is truly a kind of treason."

"THEY WANT TO MAKE A DEAL"

Stating that they have carried out new attacks against Iran, Trump claimed that the Tehran administration wants to return to the table.

Trump said, "They want to make a deal, they came back. We had a deal 2 days ago and now they want to deal again. They have been negotiating for 47 years, but no one had hit them militarily. We are hitting them very hard."