Trump lists war objectives, says Iran operation to last four to five weeks
INTERNATIONAL – ASIA
3 MARCH 2025
- U.S. President Donald Trump said he is not ruling out sending U.S. troops into Iran, while threatening a new, “big wave” of attacks.
- While so far the assault has focused entirely on aerial attacks by missiles and bombs, Mr. Trump refused to rule out sending ground troops.
- Mr. Trump also, for the first time, clearly laid out what he said were four objectives regarding Iran.
- They include destroying the West Asian country’s missile capabilities and “annihilating the navy.”
- The U.S. President said that the other goals were stopping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and “ensuring the Iranian regime can’t continue to arm, fund and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders.”
- Mr. Trump said that the United States could sustain the assault beyond the month-long time frame he has publicly spoken about.
- “We’re already substantially ahead of our time projections,” Mr. Trump said. “From the beginning we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that. We’ll do it.”
- Meanwhile, Pentagon chief Mr. Hegseth sought to differentiate the Iran operation from past long-running U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, saying the war is not an effort to build democracy in Iran.
- “No stupid rules of engagement, no nation building quagmire, no democracy-building exercise. No politically correct wars. We fight to win and we don’t waste time or lives,” the Pentagon chief said. “This is not Iraq. This is not endless,” Mr. Hegseth said.
