00:00Trump vows to keep U.S. troops in Middle East until mission accomplished, amid congressional
00:05pressure.
00:07Washington, June 7th.
00:09President Donald Trump declared on Sunday that he has no intention of withdrawing U.S.
00:14forces from the Middle East, insisting that American troops will remain in the region
00:18until the operation is completed.
00:21In an interview with NBC News' Meet the Press, Trump stated that keeping troops in the region
00:26costs us very little, and dismissed suggestions of a drawdown as premature given the ongoing
00:32tensions with Iran.
00:34I think we'll keep them there until such time as we have a completion, Trump told NBC moderator
00:39Kristen Welker, later adding, I would say it would be foolhardy to do that, because maybe
00:44we may use them.
00:46Trump's Assessment of Iran's Military and Nuclear Capabilities
00:50During the wide-ranging interview, Trump offered a blunt assessment of Iran's current military
00:56posture, claiming that major components of the Iranian armed forces have been effectively
01:01neutralized.
01:02Their navy is gone.
01:04Their air force is gone.
01:05Their anti-aircraft is gone, Trump said.
01:08The president also claimed that the U.S. has destroyed about 90% of Iran's conventional
01:14naval forces and has significantly degraded Tehran's ability to produce and deploy ballistic missiles.
01:20However, independent fact-checking by NBC News noted that Trump's claims are exaggerated.
01:26While the Pentagon has confirmed the destruction of approximately 90% of Iran's conventional
01:31navy and more than 95% of its naval mines, the country's unconventional fast-boat fleet,
01:37operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC, remains largely intact.
01:43These smaller vessels are critical to Iran's ability to disrupt shipping through the Strait
01:47of Hormuz.
01:48On the nuclear front, Trump asserted that Iran has conceded the fact that they will not have
01:54nuclear weapons, and claimed that the U.S. had obliterated Iranian nuclear sites using
02:00B-2 bombers.
02:01However, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Iran continues to retain
02:07nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% purity, just a short technical step from
02:14weapons-grade material.
02:15Trump acknowledged that Iran still retains approximately 20 to 21% of its nuclear weapons
02:21program infrastructure, adding that while the U.S. has located most of these sites, Iran
02:26has little ability to use them to strike back.
02:33A central theme of Trump's interview was his stated desire to meet directly with Iran's
02:39new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not been seen in public since succeeding his
02:44father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following the elder leader's death in a U.S.-Israeli airstrike
02:50on February 28, 2026.
02:53Trump confirmed to NBC that Khamenei is alive and involved in decision-making.
02:59He's involved, absolutely, Trump said.
03:01The president described Khamenei as more rational than his father, while acknowledging the severity
03:07of his injuries.
03:08He's pretty badly injured, so there's a certain bravery there, Trump said.
03:12A lot of people, if they were injured that badly, they wouldn't be talking about, you
03:17know, how are we doing with the United States?
03:19They'd have other things on their minds.
03:21The extent of Khamenei's injuries has been the subject of intense international speculation.
03:26On Saturday, Iranian official Seyyed Ahmad Khatami, a representative for Kerman in the
03:32Assembly of Experts, publicly disclosed that Khamenei's leg injury, sustained on the first
03:37day of the war, was so severe that the possibility of amputation was under consideration.
03:42According to Khatami, dedicated medical intervention ultimately saved the limb, and Khamenei is
03:49now in good health.
03:51This disclosure contradicts months of official Iranian messaging that Khamenei had only suffered
03:56minor wounds, requiring a few stitches.
03:59Multiple Western intelligence assessments have suggested that Khamenei remains incapacitated
04:03and largely unable to participate in decision making.
04:07Experts quoted by AFP note that it is very unlikely at this point that he has the degree
04:12of influence that his father used to have.
04:14Trump told reporters he does not know Khamenei's exact location, adding, I don't want to say
04:20whether or not I know where he is, but there's a good chance that I do.
04:24The president's interest in a direct meeting reflects his belief that Khamenei, despite his
04:29injuries, remains the only person who makes the decisions in Tehran.
04:33Trump suggested that face-to-face talks could be arranged once a final agreement is near
04:38completion.
04:40Congressional pressure.
04:41War Powers Resolution passes House.
04:45Trump's commitment to keeping U.S. troops in the region comes just days after the House
04:49of Representatives approved a War Powers Resolution that would halt U.S. military action against
04:54Iran.
04:54The resolution, which passed on June 3rd by a vote of 215 to 218, declares that a formal
05:01declaration of war by Congress is required for continued combat operations, with exceptions
05:06only for actions necessary to defend the U.S. or its allies against imminent attacks.
05:12Four Republicans joined House Democrats in supporting the measure, reflecting growing opposition to
05:17the war within Trump's own party as midterm elections approach.
05:21House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries called on Republicans to join Democrats in ending this
05:28reckless and costly war of choice, which he claimed has cost American taxpayers over $100 billion.
05:35The resolution now moves to the Senate, which advanced a similar measure last month when four
05:41Republican senators broke ranks with the president.
05:43Senate.
05:44However, even if the Senate passes the resolution, President Trump retains the authority to veto it.
05:50Overriding a presidential veto would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers, a threshold that appears highly unlikely to
05:57be met.
05:58Trump responded to the congressional action by asserting that the United States is not an aggressor against Iran, but rather
06:06a victim of a threat from Tehran.
06:14The United States currently maintains approximately 50,000 troops across the Middle East, along with 16 warships and 100 fighter
06:26jets deployed to counter potential Iranian aggression in the region.
06:29During the 40-day war with Israel against Iran, the U.S. deployed over 300 fighter jets.
06:37Currently, more than 50,000 U.S. special operations forces remain in the area, positioned to respond to a potential
06:44second wave of conflict should Trump decide to order renewed strikes.
06:48Trump has characterized the ongoing military posture as a protective measure, telling NBC that keeping troops in the region is
06:56not an endless war, but rather a necessary deterrent.
07:00We're very close to having a deal, and if we don't have a deal, we'll do it one way or
07:04the other.
07:05Either way, we win, Trump said, referring to ongoing ceasefire negotiations with Tehran.
07:11Tehran's position.
07:13Withdrawal as a precondition.
07:15Iran, for its part, continues to demand the complete withdrawal of all U.S. troops from the Middle East as
07:21a key condition for any final agreement to end the war.
07:24Tehran has made clear that it views the ongoing American military presence as a fundamental obstacle to a durable peace.
07:31Despite multiple rounds of indirect negotiations mediated by Pakistan, the two sides remain far apart on several key issues, including
07:40the status of Iran's nuclear program, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and the release of approximately $24 billion
07:46in frozen Iranian assets.
07:49Trump, however, has signaled that he is in no rush to withdraw U.S. forces.
07:53I think we'll keep them there until the operation is completed, he reiterated.
07:57The Fragile Ceasefire
07:59The current ceasefire, brokered by Pakistan in early April, has been repeatedly tested over the past week.
08:07On Saturday and Sunday, U.S. forces shot down Iranian drones over the Strait of Hormuz and struck Iranian coastal
08:14surveillance radar sites on Kesham Island and near the city of Gorok.
08:19Iran, in turn, launched ballistic missiles toward U.S. bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, which were intercepted by Allied air
08:26defenses.
08:27Despite these exchanges, Trump has maintained that the ceasefire remains intact and that negotiations are progressing.
08:34We're very close to having a deal, he told NBC, expressing confidence that a final agreement could be reached over
08:41the next week.
08:43Looking ahead, with the Senate yet to act on the House War Powers Resolution, and with Trump vowing to keep
08:50U.S. troops in the region, regardless of congressional sentiment,
08:53the stage is set for a constitutional confrontation over the president's authority to conduct military operations without formal congressional approval.
09:02Meanwhile, the political clock is ticking.
09:05Midterm elections are just five months away, and growing opposition to the war, even within the president's own party, could
09:12have significant electoral consequences.
09:14Whether Trump can secure a deal with Tehran before the political winds shift remains the central question.
09:21But as the president made clear on Sunday, American forces will remain in the Middle East until he decides otherwise.
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