If peace doesn't come quickly, will go after other targets: Trump

Washington, June 22 (IANS) US President Donald Trump asserted that no military in the world could have carried out strikes against the Iranian nuclear sites and also warned Tehran that if peace does not come quickly, America will go after other targets with "precision, speed and skill."

This comes as Trump announced that America had bombed three nuclear sites in Iran and warned Tehran of further precision strikes unless it ended its confrontation with Israel. The targeted locations reportedly include the highly fortified Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan nuclear facilities.

Addressing a media briefing just hours after the strikes on Saturday (US time), Trump stated, "I want to congratulate the great American patriots who flew those magnificent machines tonight and all of the United States military on a operation, the likes of which the world has not seen in many many decades. Hopefully we no longer need their services in this capacity. I hope so."

"This cannot continue. There will either be peace or tragedy for Iran, far greater than what we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left."

"Tonight was the most difficult of them all by far and perhaps the most lethal. But if peace does not come quickly, we will go after those other targets with precision, speed and skill. Most of them can be taken out in a matter of minutes. There is no military in the world that could have done what we did tonight, not even close. There is never been a military that could have done what took place just a little while ago," he added.

The US President asserted that the strikes were aimed at crippling Iran's "nuclear enrichment capacity and put a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world's number one state sponsor of terror."

Despite weeks of diplomatic efforts to renegotiate a nuclear agreement with Tehran -- following the US withdrawal from the 2015 accord in 2018 -- Trump has now thrown full support behind Israel's military campaign against Iran's nuclear infrastructure and high-ranking military officials, a campaign launched a little over a week ago.

In his statement, Trump extended gratitude to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying, "I want to thank and congratulate Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. We worked as a team, like perhaps no team has ever worked before, and we've gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel. I want to thank the Israeli military for the wonderful job they've done."

The air conflict between the two nations erupted on June 13 when Israel launched a surprise strike on Iran.

Israeli authorities claimed the offensive was a preemptive measure to stop Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons -- an ambition Iran has consistently denied.

The conflict has since raised tensions across the region, already on edge following Israel's prolonged war in Gaza since October 2023.

The latest exchange has now drawn in the United States in a direct military capacity.

Iranian state media confirmed that parts of the Fordow nuclear facility were hit in what it called "enemy strikes," though further details on the extent of the damage remain limited.

--IANS

int/sd/