President Donald Trump and his top officials have offered shifting objectives and reasons for the US-Israeli war on Iran, which critics say shows a lack of planning for the conflict and its aftermath.
Stated objectives and expected timeline have varied, including toppling Iran’s government, weakening Iran’s military, security and nuclear capabilities and its regional influence, as well as supporting Israeli interests.
Here is how Trump described his war goals and timeline:
FEBRUARY 28: CALLS FOR IRANIANS TO TOPPLE THEIR GOVERNMENT
The Iranian people should “take over” governance of their country, Trump said in a video on social media as the US and Israel launched their attacks. “It will be yours to take,” he added. “This will be probably your only chance for generations.”
Trump described the attacks as “major combat operations.”
FEBRUARY 28: WEAKEN IRAN’S MILITARY, INFLUENCE
Trump said Washington would deny Iran the ability to have a nuclear weapon, although Tehran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. Iran does not have nuclear weapons while the United States does. Israel is also widely believed to be the only Middle Eastern country with nuclear weapons.
Trump insisted he would end what he described as Tehran’s ballistic missile threat. “We’re going to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground,” he said. “We’re going to annihilate their navy.”
Trump claimed Iran’s long range missiles “can now threaten our very good friends and allies in Europe, our troops stationed overseas, and could soon reach the American homeland.”
His remarks echoed the case of President George W Bush for the Iraq war, which had false claims. Neither experts nor US intelligence support Trump’s assertions and both assess that Iran’s ballistic missile program was years from threatening the US homeland.
MARCH 2: SHIFTING TIMELINE
Trump said the war was projected to last four to five weeks but could go on longer.
“We’re already substantially ahead of our time projections. But whatever the time is, it’s okay. Whatever it takes,” Trump said at the White House. In a social media post, Trump said there was a “virtually unlimited supply” of US munitions and that “wars can be fought ‘forever,’ and very successfully, using just these supplies.”
In a notification to Congress, Trump provided no timeline. Trump earlier told the Daily Mail the war could take “four weeks, or less,” then told The New York Times four to five weeks and subsequently said it could take longer.
MARCH 2: RUBIO SAYS US ATTACKED IRAN BECAUSE ISRAEL
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