US President Donald Trump has downplayed the confrontation with Iran as “small potatoes for us,” while claiming Washington has “essentially taken over Iran”, even as the conflict has cost the lives of 18 American service members. Trump also said US forces control the Strait of Hormuz and could strike Pickaxe Mountain again if activity resumes amid continued tensions with Tehran.
Iran conflict ‘small potatoes’
Trump made the remarks while responding to questions about Vice President J.D. Vance’s refusal to call the confrontation a war, even after the United States resumed strikes against Iran.
“Well, I’ll tell you what, a lot of people don’t call it a war. I call it a military conflict because it’s small potatoes for us. It’s not a big thing,” Trump told reporters.
Trump acknowledged that 18 US service members had been killed but said the current confrontation could not be compared with longer American wars in Vietnam and Afghanistan.
“I would say that it’s intermittent. You know, we do intermittent strikes,” Trump said. “We’re not fighting right now. There’s no fighting.”
ran will not get nuclear weapon
When asked how he could describe the confrontation as “small potatoes” after American troops were killed, Trump defended the US operation, which he said had been continuing for five months.
“Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. We’ve stopped them from having,” he said.
Strike on Pickaxe Mountain
Trump also warned that the United States could launch another strike against a location he identified as Pickaxe Mountain if it detected renewed activity there.
“We may hit Pickaxe very soon because if there was anything going on with Pickaxe,” he said, adding that US forces were monitoring activity across Iran.
“And if anything goes bad, we hit them. We hit them hard,” Trump said.
Control over Strait of Hormuz
Trump claimed that US forces had destroyed Iranian radar, aircraft and other equipment used to protect the Strait of Hormuz.
He also said American minesweepers had removed mines from the key waterway and claimed oil shipments were moving through the strait.
“We control the Hormuz Strait, and we control it very strongly,” he said.
US has ‘essentially taken over Iran’
Trump went further in describing the scale of the US military operation, saying Washington had taken control of Iran.
“We took over Venezuela and we have essentially taken over Iran,” Trump said.
He said there had been no shooting for several days after the latest US strikes. Trump also claimed Iran could take 25 years to rebuild if Washington ended the operation immediately.
“But I want to leave so that the next president doesn’t have to worry about it,” Trump said, without giving a timetable for ending the confrontation.
Xi Jinping not to intervene
Trump was also asked about China’s relationship with Iran. He said he had personally urged Chinese President Xi Jinping not to intervene in the conflict.
“I said, please don’t get involved to President Xi,” Trump said. “And they’re not really involved, very little involvement by China.”
Trump noted that China receives significant oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz. He said new pipelines and an overland route through Syria were creating alternatives to the strategic waterway.
“The Hormuz Strait is not what it used to be,” Trump said. “Pipelines are being built all over the Middle East now, so they don’t have to go through the Hormuz Strait.”
