President Donald Trump on Saturday indicated that the United States could conclude its ongoing military campaign against Iran within days, underscoring what he described as strategic flexibility rather than a march toward occupation or prolonged war.
In a brief phone interview with Axios from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, Trump outlined potential exit strategies for the operation — formally designated Operation Epic Fury — which began early Saturday in coordination with Israel. The joint strikes mark one of the most consequential American military actions in the Middle East in decades.
Trump framed the mission as decisive but not open-ended.
“I can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: ‘See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding [your nuclear and missile programs].'”
He added: “In any case, it will take them several years to recover from this attack.”
The remarks provide the first sustained public glimpse into Trump’s thinking on how the conflict might conclude. They come just days after U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations in Geneva collapsed, scuttling what had been a fragile diplomatic track. While some voices in Washington and Jerusalem have floated regime change as a possible objective, Trump’s comments suggest he is leaving open a narrower military aim — degrading Iran’s capabilities rather than remaking its government.
According to the president, two factors drove the decision to initiate strikes.
First was the breakdown in diplomacy. Trump said Iranian negotiators repeatedly approached a deal only to retreat. Iranian representatives “got close and then pulled back — close and then pulled back.” The talks included U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Trump characterized the pattern as evidence that Tehran was not negotiating in good faith.
Second, he cited what he described as a sustained record of hostile conduct by Iran. While drafting his announcement speech Friday, Trump requested a summary of Iranian-linked incidents over the past quarter century. The list, he said, revealed a consistent pattern of aggression: “every month they did something bad, blew something up or killed someone.”
Trump also tied the current campaign to an earlier strike he authorized last June, known as Operation Midnight Hammer, which targeted three Iranian nuclear facilities. He argued that the earlier operation significantly degraded Iran’s infrastructure and prevented Tehran from advancing far enough in its program to make the present offensive impossible. Without that action, he suggested, Iran might already possess a nuclear weapon.
He further claimed that Iran had begun attempts to rebuild portions of the damaged sites, though independent assessments have confirmed construction activity without establishing that weapons-related development had resumed.
A senior U.S. official said the joint U.S.-Israeli operation is expected to involve extensive bombing for at least five days. Yet Trump emphasized that the timeline remains fluid, dependent on battlefield conditions and high-level developments — including the status of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated Saturday that indications were growing that Khamenei had been killed in a strike on his compound.
Trump confirmed a call with Netanyahu following the launch.
“I had a great conversation with Bibi — we’re on the same wavelength.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt reported that Trump also spoke with leaders in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, as well as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, as the regional implications of the operation widened.
The strikes follow months of escalating tension marked by failed diplomacy, intelligence warnings regarding Iranian military movements, and pressure from U.S. allies.
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