U.S. President Donald Trump has alleged that Iran was preparing to launch a major attack on the United States and possessed far more missiles than initially believed.
Speaking on Monday during the annual policy retreat of Republican Party lawmakers in Florida, Trump said American intelligence indicated that Tehran was on the verge of striking.
“I’ll give you the best reason of all. Within a week, they were going to attack us — 100 percent. They were ready,” Trump told the gathering.
“They had all these missiles, far more than anyone thought, and they were going to attack us,” he added.
Trump’s remarks come amid escalating tensions following recent U.S. military strikes on Iran, which the president suggested may soon bring the conflict to an end.
In a phone interview with CBS News from his golf club in Doral, Florida, Trump claimed that U.S. forces had significantly weakened Iran’s military capability.
“I think the war is very complete, pretty much,” he said. “They have no navy, no communications, no air force. Their missiles are scattered, and their drones are being destroyed everywhere, including their drone manufacturing.”
According to the U.S. military, more than 3,000 targets across Iran have been struck during the first week of the operation.
“If you look, they have nothing left. There’s nothing left in a military sense,” Trump said.
The development follows reports that Iran appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s new Supreme Leader after his father, Ali Khamenei, was reportedly killed in a U.S.–Israeli airstrike.
When asked if he had a message for the new leader, Trump responded: “I have no message for him. None whatsoever,” adding that he had someone else in mind to lead the country.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) dismissed Trump’s claims, insisting that only Iran would determine when the war ends.
“It is we who will determine the end of the war,” the Guards said in a statement on Tuesday.
“The equations and the future status of the region are now in the hands of our armed forces. American forces will not end the war,” the statement added.
