President Donald Trump issued a clear warning Wednesday: if Iran tries to rebuild its nuclear program, the U.S. will strike again.
“Sure,” Trump replied bluntly when asked by a reporter if another strike was on the table. The exchange happened at a NATO summit in the Netherlands.
U.S. officials have praised the effectiveness of last weekend’s airstrikes. Backed by Israeli intelligence, they claim Iran’s nuclear program has been set back “many years.”
The comment came shortly after Trump was publicly praised by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, who called the president “a man of strength” and “a man of peace.”
“I just want to recognize your decisive action on Iran,” Rutte said. “The fact that you are now also successful in getting this ceasefire done between Israel and Iran — I really want to commend you for that.”
Rutte also applauded Trump’s push to boost NATO defense spending. Every member nation, except Spain, has now agreed to hit the 5% GDP target.
“You’re flying into another big success,” Rutte said. “You achieved something no American president in decades could get done.”
Reactions to the Iran strikes remain mixed within NATO. Some leaders called for calm but admitted a nuclear-armed Iran would pose a global threat. For now, the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Iran and Israel is holding — barely.