Trump said he once asked military officials why Iranian naval ships were not captured during US operations, claiming he was told it was “more fun to sink them.”
US President Donald Trump has said the United States has struck around 5,000 targets in Iran since the Middle East war began last month, claiming Tehran’s missile capability has been reduced to about 10 per cent.
Speaking at the Republican Members Issues Conference in Florida on Monday, Trump said US forces also sank 46 Iranian naval ships in just three and a half days. He recounted asking military officials why the vessels were destroyed instead of captured.
“They were top-of-the-line ships,” Trump said, adding that he was told it was “safer to sink them.” The remark drew laughter from Republican lawmakers as Trump said the Navy believed destroying the ships was the better option.
The US President described the military campaign as a short-term mission aimed at eliminating threats in the region, saying the US “will not relent until the enemy is totally and decisively defeated.”
Trump warns Iran over Strait of Hormuz
Trump also warned Iran against disrupting oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy route. In a social media post, he said that if Iran blocked the flow of oil through the strait, the US would respond “twenty times harder” than it has so far.
He added that Washington could target sites that would make it “virtually impossible” for Iran to rebuild its capabilities if such a move occurred.
Iran responded by saying it would not allow “one litre of oil” to leave the region if attacks by the US and Israel continued. An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps spokesperson said Tehran would determine when the war ends, according to Iranian state media.
Conflict shakes global markets
The conflict between Iran, Israel, and the US has already rattled global markets, with stock prices falling and oil prices surging.
The war began on February 28 when US and Israeli forces launched joint strikes on Iran that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Tehran has since appointed his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, as the country’s new supreme leader.
Iran has also fired missiles at Israel and several Gulf states — including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, and the UAE — which host US military bases.
The conflict widened last week when a US strike sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena off the coast of Sri Lanka, killing about 80 people. The vessel had earlier been on a friendly visit to India before the attack.
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