Photo: Collected
US President Donald Trump has said the war with Iran was prolonged because of his decision. In an interview with Time magazine, he said there was an opportunity to stop the war right after the US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, but he decided to continue the operation.
At the outset he had said the war would last six to eight weeks. Asked why that war has rolled into its seventh month, Trump said, ‘Because I wanted to go further’.
He said the operation could have been stopped right after the strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities with B-2 bombers. However, he claimed Iranian officials were ‘eager’ to start activities again; even if not possible at the same place, they could have started it somewhere else.
The US president said, ‘I could have stopped right there. But I felt that would not be right’.
He further said he wanted to make sure Iran could not ‘come back in some other form’.
Time magazine then asked about Trump’s earlier threat to ‘destroy’ Iran.
In reply he said, ‘Yes, I can do that’.
At that point a journalist asked how a man who claims to be the ‘President of Peace’ could talk of destroying a country.
In reply Trump said, ‘By destroying Iran we have brought peace to the world. I do not think peace will ever be established with Iran’.
