US President Donald Trump on Thursday issued a fresh warning to Tehran to make a deal before it is too late amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Trump made the fresh remarks nearly 12 hours after his prime address to the nation, following air strikes on a highway bridge linking Tehran to the western city of Karaj.
"The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again — Much more to follow! It is time for Iran to make a deal before it is too late, and there is nothing left of what still could become a great country," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Over the past few days, Trump has repeatedly shifted his stance on the Iran war, at times hinting at an early end to the conflict and at others talking about hitting Iran hard.
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On Thursday morning, in his first address to the nation since the start of the Iran war, Trump said that US forces will 'finish the job' in Iran soon as 'core strategic objectives are nearing completion'.
"Thanks to the progress we've made, I can say tonight that we are on-track to complete all of America's military objectives shortly. We are going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks... In the meantime, discussions are ongoing."
Trump said that the military action is not for getting any of the country's vast resources, including oil, but instead to help America's allies.
“We're now totally independent of the Middle East, and yet we are there to help. We don't have to be there. We don't need their oil. We don't need anything they have. We're there to help our allies."
ALSO READ: Iran's Bridge Connecting Tehran to Karaj Struck After Trump Vows Extremely Hard' Action
He claimed significant progress had been made towards achieving his goals in the war with Iran.
"Tonight, Iran's navy is gone, their air force is in ruins, their leaders, most of them... are now dead. Their command and control of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is being decimated as we speak, their ability to launch missiles and drones is dramatically curtailed, and their weapons, factories, and rocket launchers are being blown to pieces."
He further claimed that their enemies are losing — "And America, as it has been for five years under my presidency, is winning, and now, winning bigger than ever before."
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