Trump says Iran's growing ballistic missile program had posed threat to U.S. forces

Record ID: 2359671

  • Title: Trump says Iran's growing ballistic missile program had posed threat to U.S. forces
  • Date: 2nd March 2026
  • Summary: WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES (MARCH 2, 2026) (UNRESTRICTED POOL) GENERAL VIEW OF U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SAYING:      "Today the United States military continues to carry out large scale combat operations in Iran to eliminate the grave threats posed to America by this terrible terrorist regime. Following our ob
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: Donald Trump Iran Mideast strikes
  • Location: WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES
  • City: WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES
  • Country: US
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,North America,Military Conflicts
  • Reuters ID: LVA001013002032026RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday (March 2) he had ordered the attack on Iran to thwart Tehran's nuclear development and a ballistic missile program that he said was growing rapidly.
    Trump offered his most extensive comments about the war beyond two video messages and a series of brief phone interviews with reporters over the weekend that offered sometimes conflicting objectives in the conflict.
    He said, without providing evidence, that the threat from Iran had been imminent.
    A central premise of the fight was to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, which Tehran has denied doing, and thwart its long-range ballistic missile program, Trump said.
    "Today, the United States military continues to carry out large-scale, combat operations in Iran to eliminate the grave threats posed to America by this terrible, terrorist regime," Trump said.
    He said the objectives of the war included destroying Iran's missile capabilities, annihilating their navy and stopping from them from having a nuclear weapon."
    (Production: Kristin Neubauer)
  • Copyright Holder: POOL (CAN SELL)
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2026. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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