Trump Claims Iran Nuclear Program 'Obliterated' in 2025 Despite Justifying New Strikes on Nuclear Threat

President Trump justified U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran by claiming the country was rebuilding its nuclear weapons program and developing missiles that could 'soon' reach the United States. However, Trump had previously stated in June 2025 that Iran's nuclear program had been 'totally obliterated' by U.S. airstrikes. This contradiction was highlighted by fact-checkers and intelligence sources, who noted that Trump's claims about Iran's missile development were not supported by U.S. intelligence reports. A November 2025 White House document had described the earlier strikes as having 'significantly degraded' rather than obliterated Iran's nuclear program. The inconsistency undermined the administration's justification for the new military intervention, which marked the largest U.S. operation since the Iraq war.

"Iran's nuclear program had been 'totally obliterated' by U.S. airstrikes (June 2025), yet Tehran was 'rebuilding' its nuclear weapons program with missiles that could 'soon' reach the United States (February 2026)" — Contradictory statements used to justify military strikes on Iran - first claiming complete destruction of nuclear program, then citing its rebuilding as justification for new attacks