President-elect Donald Trump engaged in a heated exchange with a reporter on Monday, dismissing questions about potential preemptive strikes on Iran. The interaction took place during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago, where Trump addressed media inquiries following his remarks on a major investment deal.
Targeting Iran’s Nuclear Facilities
When asked whether he would consider preemptive strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, Trump responded sharply.
“Well, I can’t tell you that. I mean, it’s a wonderful question, but how can I—am I going to do preemptive strikes? Why would I say that?” he replied.
He continued to challenge the line of questioning, “Can you imagine if I said yes or no? You would say, ‘That was strange that he answered that way.’ Am I going to do preemptive strikes on Iran? Is that a serious question? How could I answer a question like that?”
Trump refused to provide specifics
The reporter followed up, asking if Trump would support Israel in striking Iran. Trump maintained his refusal to provide specifics.
“How could I tell you a thing like that now?” he said. “You don’t talk about that before something may or may not happen. I don’t want to insult you, I just think it’s just not something that I would ever answer—having to do with there or any other place in the world.”
The press event also highlighted a major announcement: a $100 billion investment in the United States by SoftBank, promising to create 100,000 new American jobs. Trump appeared alongside Masayoshi Son, SoftBank’s chairman and CEO, to share the news.
Trump on resolving global conflicts
During the conference, President-elect addressed ongoing efforts to resolve global conflicts. “We’re trying to help very strongly and getting the hostages back, as you know, with Israel and the Middle East,” he said.
Turning to the war in Ukraine, Trump described the situation as “horrible” and “nasty” but noted some progress. “We’re working very much on that. We’re trying to get the war stopped, that horrible, horrible war that’s going on in Ukraine with Russia. We’ve got a little progress. It’s a tough one. It’s a nasty one,” he said.
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