President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President says it would take Iran 10 years to rebuild if America ended its strikes now, adding the US will continue fighting for several weeks.
By World Israel News Staff
The United States has not yet achieved all of its goals in Iran, President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday, but emphasized that the war will be over in the near future.
Speaking with the press at the White House, Trump said that US and Israeli airstrikes have inflicted massive damage on Iran that could take a decade to undo, while adding that the US will need to continue fighting for at least several more weeks.
“If we left right now, it would take 10 years for them to rebuild. But we are not ready to leave yet. But we’ll be leaving in the near future,” Trump said. “They have been decimated from every standpoint.”
When asked how much longer Operation Epic Fury is expected to last, Trump said: “A couple of weeks. It won’t be much longer.”
“We’re doing very well, I will say. We’re knocking them for a loop. They can’t have a nuclear weapon, and they now understand that very strongly,” Trump continued.
The president added that the US has received significant support from its allies in the region, without specifying any countries by name, while lamenting that NATO member states have refused to aid in the war effort.
“We have had great support from countries in the Middle East, great support. But we’ve had no support – essentially no support from NATO.”
On Wednesday, Trump suggested handing over management of the Strait of Hormuz after Iran has been “finished off” to the countries that rely on the waterway for their oil shipments.
“I wonder what would happen if we ‘finished off’ what’s left of the Iranian Terror State, and let the Countries that use it, we don’t, be responsible for the so called ‘Strait?’ That would get some of our non-responsive “Allies” in gear, and fast!!!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account.
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