Trump will deliver the first speech on the US-Israel war on Iran at 9 pm ET
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US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Iran wants a ceasefire, hours before his first address to the nation to provide an update on the ongoing war.
Trump is scheduled to speak at 9 pm ET, and has indicated that he will use the time to say that he is considering withdrawing the US from NATO.
He made a claim about the cessation of fire on his social media account, saying in response, “We will consider when the Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we blast Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!!”
Iran has denied making such a request.
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Thousands were killed throughout the Middle East
A White House official later said Trump is expected to reiterate in his speech that he believes the war in Iran will end in the next two to three weeks, and provide an update on US progress in achieving its goals in Iran.
The official said those goals are to destroy Iran’s missile production, to destroy its navy, to ensure that its proxies can no longer destabilize the region and to ensure that it does not acquire a nuclear weapon.
Thousands of people have been killed across the Middle East since Feb. 28, when the US and Israel attacked Iran, starting the Iranian attack on Israel, the US bases and the Gulf regions, while opening a new front in Lebanon.
The conflict has caused the largest supply shortage in the history of the global energy market, putting political pressure on Trump to end the conflict quickly, even as analysts say his goals have not been met.
Lamenting the lack of support for opening the Strait of Hormuz, US President Donald Trump called NATO a ‘paper tiger,’ and its members ‘cowards.’ Wendy Gilmour, Former Assistant Secretary General for Defense Investment at NATO, joins Power & Politics to discuss what this means for the alliance.
Trump suggested on Tuesday that he could end the war in two to three weeks without a deal, while increasing threats to pull the US out of the NATO defense alliance if European countries do not help stop Iran from blocking the waterway.
Speaking to Reuters on Wednesday, Trump said he would express his displeasure with NATO for what he considers to be a lack of support for American interests in Iran.
US Senate reacts to NATO attack
Trump’s attack on NATO has led to a bipartisan defense of the alliance in the US Senate. Republican Senator Mitch McConnell and Democratic Representative Chris Coons in a joint statement said that “NATO is the most successful military alliance in history” and emphasized how its members “fought and died” alongside US troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“The American people are safer when NATO is strong and united,” the statement said. “The Senate will continue to support the alliance for peace and security it offers America, Europe and the world.”
France was among the first European NATO members to respond to Trump’s threats.
“Let me remember what NATO is,” said French defense minister Alice Rufo. “It is a military alliance that deals with territorial security in the Euro-Atlantic area. It is not intended to carry out operations in the Strait of Hormuz, which is against international law.”
A German government spokesman, when asked about Trump’s comments during a government press conference, said that Germany is still committed to NATO: “It is not the first time it has done this, and since it is a repeated situation, you can judge the results yourself,” they said.
The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said he would serve his country, regardless of the “noise.” The instability caused by the war meant that Britain should focus on closer economic and defense ties with Europe, he said.
Experts say it is not clear whether Trump can leave the 77-year-old alliance, although he often takes major decisions without congressional approval, some of which have been held up by US courts.
