US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth began today’s address by saying that Operation Epic Rage has a special meaning for him because of his own experience from the war in Iraq. He said that Iran is “rushing towards a nuclear bomb” and stressed that US President Donald Trump “will never allow that”.
Hegseth added that the Iranian leadership knows that their military is “systematically weakening” and that Iran is “standing alone and seriously losing”. On the other hand, he pointed out that America is “winning” and that it is implementing its goals – destroying Iran’s missiles, navy and permanently stopping Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. He added: “We will not relent until the enemy is completely and utterly defeated.”
He also emphasized that “this is not 2003 or endless state-building,” trying to make a distinction between this campaign and earlier American interventions in the Middle East. He added that today will be the “most intense day of attacks” since the start of the campaign, while Iran has fired the lowest number of missiles since the beginning of the conflict in the last 24 hours.
Focus on three main goals
In addition to Hegseth, General Dan Caine in his speech paid tribute to the American soldiers who died during Trump’s war against Iran.
Speaking about the course of the conflict, he said joint US forces remain focused on three main goals: destroying missile and drone capabilities before they threaten US interests, attacking and weakening Iran’s navy, and stopping the Iranian regime from attacking the US and its allies for years.
“Ballistic missile attacks have been reduced by 90 percent since the start of the operation,” he added.
He also stated that American forces attack Iranian rockets intended to lay mines, stressing that it is a “difficult and tireless job”.
A warning to the new Iranian leader
Hegseth went on to say that there is strong evidence that Iran’s ballistic missiles and drones have been significantly weakened. He added that the new leader of Iran “would be wise to listen to the words of the American president and give up the development of nuclear weapons.”
Asked by reporters if he could comment on the status of Iran’s new supreme leader, following reports that he had been wounded, Hegseth said he could not speak to that.
“This is not an endless or protracted conflict,” he said. “It’s not for me to judge whether this is the beginning, the middle or the end – that’s President Trump’s decision.”
A “serious mistake” by the regime
Commenting on the Iranian attacks on neighboring countries in the Gulf, the minister said that it was a serious mistake by the Iranian regime. “It was a big mistake of the Iranian regime to attack its neighbors right from the start, acting chaotically and recklessly,” Hegseth said.
He believes that such moves showed Tehran’s misjudgment, because, according to him, they further encouraged other countries to support the American military campaign.
