Trump likens US strikes on Iran to Hiroshima, claims they ended war and set nuclear program back by decades

President Donald Trump, speaking at the NATO summit in The Hague praised recent US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, comparing them to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

He claimed the strikes “ended that war” and had “totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program, setting it back by "decades."

Trump dismissed reports suggesting limited damage as “fake news” and “very inconclusive,” insisting that US bombers and bunker-buster bombs had destroyed key facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. He warned that if Iran attempts to rebuild its nuclear infrastructure, “the US could strike again.”

However, a preliminary Pentagon assessment indicates that the damage may have set Iran's nuclear program back by only a few months.

According to intelligence officials, Iran may have moved enriched uranium out of the sites prior to the strikes, and much of the underground infrastructure remains intact. General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the full extent of the impact is still being evaluated.

Israeli officials, while more optimistic, also stopped short of confirming Trump’s timeline. Some acknowledged that Iran’s progress had been delayed “by years,” but emphasized that a detailed technical review is still underway.

The strikes came after a 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire. Trump credited the military action with forcing Iran to back down and claimed it played a decisive role in halting the escalation.

International experts have raised concerns that overstating the impact could backfire diplomatically, with Iran hinting at the possibility of resuming enrichment outside international frameworks.