US President Donald Trump said the war against Iran is “very complete” and progressing faster than originally expected, while also holding a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the conflict and other global issues. In an interview with CBS News, Trump said the United States was “very far ahead” of the initial four-to-five-week timeline he had predicted for the war.
“I think the war is very complete, pretty much. They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no Air Force,” Trump said in remarks reported by CBS correspondent Weijia Jiang. Trump also said Iran’s military capabilities had been significantly weakened, claiming the country’s missiles and drones had been largely neutralized.
“Their missiles are down to a scatter. Their drones are being blown up all over the place, including their manufacturing of drones,” Trump said, adding that Iran had “nothing left in a military sense.”
The conflict began on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran, prompting retaliatory strikes by Tehran targeting Israel and Gulf states hosting US bases.
Trump also spoke about the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil transit chokepoint that carries roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. He said ships are currently moving through the passage but added that he is “thinking about taking it over.”
When asked about Iran’s newly named Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, Trump said he had no message for him.
“I have no message for him. None, whatsoever,” Trump said, while adding that he has someone else in mind to lead Iran, though he did not elaborate.
Trump–Putin Phone Call
Trump also spoke with Putin in a phone call on Monday, the first conversation between the two leaders this year, according to the Kremlin. Putin’s foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov said the hour-long call was “businesslike, frank, and constructive,” describing it as typical of dialogue between Russian and American leaders.
During the conversation, Putin shared several proposals aimed at achieving a quick political and diplomatic resolution to the Iran conflict.
Ushakov said Trump also gave his own assessment of the war during the call but did not disclose details about what the US president said.
During his press conference on March 9, Trump elaborated on the phone call, saying the two leaders held a “positive discussion on the Ukraine war. “We were talking about Ukraine…I think it was a positive call on that subject. And we obviously talked then about the Middle East—and he wants to be helpful. I said you could be more helpful by getting the Ukraine-Russia war over with,” Trump told reports.
