ISLAMABAD (PEN) : U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed his commitment to stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons during an interview on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures, standing firm on his narrative despite conflicting intelligence reports about the impact of recent U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Claims of Success in Striking Iran’s Nuclear Sites
Trump reiterated that Iran was “weeks away” from developing a nuclear weapon before Israel launched a 12-day military campaign starting June 13. The United States subsequently carried out strikes on Iran’s key nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nine days after the Israeli attacks.
The president asserted the U.S. strikes had “obliterated” these sites and claimed they had “set back Iran’s nuclear ambitions by decades.”
Contradictory Intelligence and IAEA Warnings
However, these claims have been challenged by assessments from U.S. intelligence agencies and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The IAEA recently stated it remains unclear how extensive the damage at the Fordow facility was, an underground site housing a large part of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi warned on Sunday that Iran might resume uranium enrichment activities within months. According to the agency’s latest data, Tehran holds over 400 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% purity — just below weapons-grade level and sufficient, if further enriched, to produce up to nine nuclear weapons.
Iran continues to deny any intention of developing nuclear arms, maintaining its program is solely for civilian use.
Trump Rejects Media and Intelligence Doubts
Rejecting reports questioning the effectiveness of the strikes, Trump accused news outlets of spreading “fake news” and dismissed claims of limited damage as “horrible” fabrications.
“They tried to build that into a story, but then it turned out, no, it was obliterated like nobody has ever seen before,” Trump said. “That meant the end to their nuclear ambitions — at least for a period of time.”
Regarding fears that Iran could restart its nuclear program post-strikes, Trump said, “The last thing they want to do right now is think about nuclear.”
Denial of Advance Warning to Iran
Reports surfaced during the attacks suggesting Iran had relocated its enriched uranium stockpile from Fordow ahead of the strikes. Trump rejected these claims, emphasizing that the U.S. did not provide advance notice.
“It’s a very hard thing to do, plus we didn’t give them much notice because they didn’t know we were coming,” he said. “Nobody thought we would go after that site because everybody said it was impenetrable — it’s at the bottom of a mountain and it’s granite.”
He added, “[But] the bomb went through it like butter.”
Additional Remarks on Trade and TikTok
In the same interview, Trump touched on trade issues, stating ongoing talks with Canada would be suspended unless Ottawa withdrew its new digital services tax targeting foreign and domestic tech companies.
On China, Trump described relations as stable despite a significant trade deficit, saying, “We’re getting along.”
He also mentioned securing a buyer for the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok, which faces a U.S. ban. According to Trump, the deal involves “very wealthy people” and will be announced within two weeks. The deadline for the ban has been extended for the third time, granting parties an additional 90 days.
