President Donald Trump warned Sunday that allowing Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon could lead to the destruction of Israel and potentially much of the Middle East, as he defended the ongoing U.S. military and economic campaign against Tehran and vowed that the Islamic Republic will never become a nuclear-armed state.
Speaking with Trey Gowdy on Fox News, Trump portrayed Iran’s nuclear ambitions as an intolerable danger and said Tehran’s longstanding role as a sponsor of terrorism makes preventing it from acquiring nuclear weapons imperative.
“Iran is a number one leading state sponsor of terror, you’ve heard that many times, in the whole world. They cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
.@POTUS: "Iran is the number one leading state sponsor of terror… They cannot have a nuclear weapon." pic.twitter.com/XmfAxTcFvT
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 31, 2026
Trump said he has repeatedly faced questions about whether the military campaign against Iran was necessary. He said the scale of destruction possible from a nuclear weapon makes the answer obvious.
“I have numerous people say, ‘Well, did you have to do it?’ And then I say, ‘Do you think it’s okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon?’ Nuclear weapon is massive destruction. You know, take what you see and multiply it times 100. And everybody says no.”
According to Trump, the U.S. pressure campaign has inflicted extraordinary damage on Iran, with the naval blockade and financial restrictions hitting the country particularly hard.
“The blockade has been unbelievable. The financial hits that we’re giving them, we’re hitting them very hard. Never, nobody’s ever been hit like this,” he said.
Calling Iran “a failing nation,” Trump indicated that he does not necessarily need a negotiated agreement to bring the confrontation to a successful conclusion, saying he is willing to see how events unfold.
“And at the right point, we’ll either win or they’ll do something. But I don’t mind winning, just winning. I don’t need a signature on a piece of paper,” Trump said.
Trump also asserted that Iran’s armed forces have suffered devastating losses during the campaign, including the destruction of major portions of its naval, air and air-defense capabilities.
“But we’re doing very well. Their Navy’s gone. Their Air Force is gone. Their leaders are gone. All of their anti-aircraft, I mean, it’s all wiped out.”
While describing Iranians as “tough people” and “smart people,” Trump condemned the country’s rulers in stark terms. “But they’re very evil,” he said.
Trump further accused the Iranian regime of killing tens of thousands of demonstrators, claiming that the death toll has continued to climb in recent months.
“They killed 52,000 protesters as of three months ago. And sadly, they’ve added very substantially to that list.”
Trump alleged that the crackdown has expanded beyond those taking part in demonstrations.
“Even people that aren’t protesting, they go into the houses and they take them and they shoot them,” Trump added.
Turning to the potential consequences of a nuclear-armed Iran, Trump said Israel’s survival would be directly threatened and suggested the repercussions could engulf the entire region.
“These are very violent, evil people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, Israel would be gone. If I weren’t president, Israel would be gone. There would be no Israel and there would probably be no Middle East,” Trump stated.
Trump also cited Iranian attacks on Gulf states after the outbreak of hostilities, saying Tehran targeted countries that had previously maintained relatively neutral relations with the Islamic Republic.
“And the way you know that is people that were sort of neutral got along with them for years. As soon as the shooting started, they started aiming at Saudi Arabia, at Qatar, at UAE, at Bahrain, at Kuwait. They were aiming. Everybody was shocked. I was surprised,” he said.
Those attacks, Trump argued, ultimately worked against Iran by costing Tehran whatever regional backing or neutrality it had previously enjoyed. He said the episode also demonstrated what those countries might have faced had Iran possessed nuclear weapons.
“I thought it was a very good thing because they lost all of the support that they had. They had a certain amount of support. They were, let’s say, neutral, largely neutral. That means that if they would have had a nuclear weapon, they would have fired it,” Trump said.
Trump reiterated his warning that the consequences of an Iranian nuclear weapon could have been catastrophic throughout the Middle East.
“So I think the Middle East would have essentially been gone. But Israel definitely would have been gone,” added the President, who said the danger could eventually have spread farther.
“And I guess we would be next or Europe or someplace. But no, you cannot let them have a nuclear weapon. And they won’t have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump’s remarks were broadcast just hours after American forces struck Iranian military targets on Larak Island. The attack reportedly left two people dead and two others wounded.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps responded by threatening retaliation. Iranian forces subsequently fired missiles toward U.S. bases in Jordan.
The attack on Larak Island represented the first American strike inside Iranian territory since late July, when Trump halted a two-week U.S. military campaign centered on the strategically vital waterway.
Trump announced last week that U.S. naval forces had completed the removal of mines from international waters in the Strait of Hormuz.
“I have just been informed by the United States Navy that all mines have been removed and/or detonated from within the International Waters of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has been notified that any ship or boat placing new mines will be immediately and systematically destroyed,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump said American forces were maintaining intensive surveillance of the area and warned that Washington would respond immediately to any attempt to place additional mines in the strait.
“Through Space Force, we are watching every square inch of the Strait, as we are, also, with Pickaxe Mountain and the already destroyed three other Nuclear sites. There is a Zero Tolerance policy on mine placement in full force and effect.”
Iran, however, has maintained that the conflict remains underway. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi subsequently said Tehran continues to consider itself at war and would keep the Strait of Hormuz closed until its demands are met.
“We are still in a state of war, and the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed,” Gharibabadi said, in comments quoted by Iranian media, while stressing that reopening the strategic waterway would require an end to the conflict on all fronts, the lifting of the blockade and a resolution of the situation in Yemen.
Gharibabadi said those conditions would have to be fulfilled before Iran permits the crucial shipping route to reopen.
“The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will only happen in exchange for ending the war on all fronts, lifting the blockade, and resolving the situation in Yemen.”
{Matzav.com}
