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US president Trump on Wednesday (local time) claimed that military operations over the past 11 days had severely weakened Iran's military capabilities. He said that American forces had "virtually destroyed" key elements of the country's defence infrastructure.
"Over the past 11 days, our military has virtually destroyed Iran. Tough country," Trump said while addressing a gathering here. Describing the Persian Gulf country as "tough", he asserted that its core military systems had been "virtually destroyed". The US president claimed Iran's defence network had been neutralised within hours of the operation beginning. "Their air force is gone. That took the better part of about three hours. They no longer have radar. They don't have anti-aircraft equipment. They don't have anything. Their missiles are down by 90 per cent. Their drones are down by 85 per cent. We're blowing up the factories where they're made, left and right," he said. Trump also linked the current military campaign to previous US operations against militant leaders, including the killing of Soleimani and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during his presidency. "Nobody has ever seen anything like what you're witnessing now. That can include the original killing of Soleimani and al-Baghdadi, two of the worst killers in the world that I took out, as well as Operation Midnight Hammer, where we totally obliterated Iran's nuclear potential," he said, adding that earlier actions also included Operation Midnight Hammer, which he said had targeted Iran's nuclear capabilities. "They don't have nuclear potential," Trump said, referring to the operation. According to Trump, the renewed military action was aimed at preventing Iran from rebuilding its military capabilities after earlier strikes. "After Midnight Hammer, we left. We figured that'll be the end of them for a while. But they started again. That's why we got to finish it," he said. Trump added, "We don't want to go back every two years". Earlier, Trump said that the International Energy Agency (IEA) has agreed to coordinate the release of 400 million barrels of oil from national petroleum reserves worldwide in a bid to reduce prices amid conflict involving Iran. Addressing a gathering here, Trump said, "I'm pleased to report that earlier today, the International Energy Agency agreed to coordinate the release of a record 400 million barrels of oil from various national petroleum reserves around the world, which will substantially reduce the oil prices, as we end this threat to America and this threat to the world." He said the coordinated move was aimed at keeping global energy supplies stable while the United States continues military operations linked to the ongoing conflict. "My administration is also working to keep the oil flowing all over," he said. Trump also claimed that US forces had targeted Iranian naval capabilities in the Gulf region to prevent disruptions to maritime shipping routes. "We have knocked out 58 naval ships. We knocked out their navy," he said, adding that US forces had also destroyed multiple Iranian mine-laying vessels allegedly intended to threaten commercial shipping. (ANI)
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