In his first live address since striking Iran, President Trump said the initial U.S. military plan called for four to five weeks of combat operations — but that the campaign is moving "substantially ahead" of schedule.
Why it matters: Trump has floated several possible timelines and "off ramps," keeping his plans vague as reporters have pressed him on the scope, duration and goals of the massive U.S.-Israel bombing campaign.
- Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine said at a Pentagon press conference Monday that Operation Epic Fury will take time, but declined to provide specifics.
- "President Trump has all the latitude in the world to talk about how long it may or may not take — four weeks, two weeks, six weeks. It could move up. It could move back," Hegseth said.
Zoom in: Trump made the remarks at a Medal of Honor ceremony at the White House. Four U.S. service members have been killed by Iranian retaliatory strikes as of Monday.
- "In their memory, we continue this mission with ferocious, unyielding resolve to crush the threat this terrorist regime poses to the American people," Trump said.
- He added that the U.S. military is prepared to continue the operation "as long as necessary."
The big picture: Trump justified the timing of the strikes by saying this was "the last best chance" to eliminate the Iranian threat — and that a diplomatic deal had fallen apart at the last moment.
- Trump said he warned the Iranians not to rebuild its nuclear facilities at a new location after last year's strikes, but claimed they ignored the warning and continued to pursue nuclear weapons.
- "We thought we had a deal and they backed out," he said.
What they're saying: Trump laid out four explicit objectives for the war, which notably did not address the status of the Iranian regime or potential U.S.-backed successors.
- Missiles: "First, we're destroying Iran's missile capabilities and you see that happening on an hourly basis and their capacity to produce brand-new ones."
- Navy: "Second, we're annihilating their Navy. We've knocked out already 10 ships. They're at the bottom of the sea."
- Proxies: "Third, we're ensuring that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm, fund and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders."
- Nuclear: "And finally, we're ensuring that the world's number one sponsor of terror can never obtain a nuclear weapon."
