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President Trump’s potential decisions on how to stop Iran from attaining nuclear weapons are a topic of hot debate, drawing curiosity and speculation from all sides.
However, the president answered a few questions aboard Air Force One on his flight home from Canada’s G7 Summit over the past few hours, addressing a few integral components of the Middle Eastern conflict.
The president was asked if his goal with the Iran-Israel conflict was to achieve a ceasefire. He replied, “I’m looking at better than a ceasefire. We’re not looking for a ceasefire.”
Trump was also asked if the United States would do “any more” for Israel now. The president said the U.S. ally was doing “pretty well” and added, “Remember, Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. It’s very simple. You don’t have to go too deep into it. They just can’t have a nuclear weapon.”
In light of the president’s Monday comments advising citizens to evacuate Iran, one reporter asked whether there was any specific threat or incoming strike to prompt such a statement.
“I want people to be safe,” Trump stated. “And that’s always possible, and a thing like that could happen. I just want people to be safe.”
Regarding U.S. troops or assets in the Middle East, one reporter asked the president if he was concerned about their safety.
“We have great people, they know how to protect themselves,” Trump said. “We’ll come down so hard if they do anything to our people. We’ll come down so hard, then the gloves are off…I think they know not to touch our troops.”
He added, “Our troops are ready.”
In terms of his ultimate goals in the region, President Trump said he was looking for “an end” to the conflict in Iran, again reiterating his statement that he was not looking for a ceasefire. “A real end, not a ceasefire – an end,” he said.
He said Iran “giving up entirely” was also “okay, too.”
Trump noted that he hoped Iran’s nuclear program would be “wiped out long before” the U.S. military ever needed to get directly involved overseas in the conflict, responding to a question on the subject.
