US President Donald Trump has blamed his predecessors Joe Biden and Barack Obama, claiming that Iran would already possess nuclear weapons if he had not pulled the United States out of the nuclear agreement negotiated during the Obama administration.
Trump was referring to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, widely known as the Iran nuclear deal, which he withdrew from in 2018 during his first term in office.
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Taking to Truth Social, Trump argued that keeping the agreement in place would have enabled Tehran to obtain a nuclear weapon years ago. He described the accord as one of the most dangerous agreements ever entered into by the United States and insisted that the global situation would look vastly different today had it remained intact. In his post, he placed the responsibility squarely on Obama and Biden.
Trump said he was proud of his decision to exit the agreement, reiterating his belief that Iran would have developed nuclear weapons within three years if the deal had continued. He also claimed that such weapons might have been used, adding that he would not allow that scenario to unfold.
“If I didn’t terminate Obama’s horrendous Iran Nuclear Deal (JCPOA), Iran would have had a Nuclear Weapon three years ago. That was the most dangerous transaction we have ever entered into, and had it been allowed to stand, the World would be an entirely different place right now. You can blame Barack Hussein Obama, and Sleepy Joe Biden,” he posted on X.
‘Iran could have hit Europe’
Beyond the nuclear issue, Trump pointed to Iran’s expanding missile capabilities. He said the country’s existing missiles were already capable of reaching Europe and US military bases abroad, and warned that Tehran could eventually build long-range systems capable of striking the United States.
He further argued that Iran’s conventional ballistic missile programme had been advancing rapidly, calling it a major threat to American interests and forces stationed overseas. According to Trump, the missile programme served as protection for Iran’s nuclear ambitions, making it far more difficult to halt any potential weapons development.
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He maintained that a nuclear-armed Iran equipped with long-range missiles would represent an unacceptable danger not only to the Middle East but also directly to the United States. He added that, in his view, the country had come close to facing such a threat.
Israel-US joint attack
Trump’s remarks come amid escalating tensions following coordinated US and Israeli airstrikes on February 28 targeting multiple sites across Iran, including military command centres, air-defence systems and missile facilities.
The strikes killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, along with four senior military and security officials. Large explosions were reported in Tehran and other major cities.
In retaliation, Iran launched ballistic missiles and drones at US-linked assets and regional allies, including Israel, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Jordan. The exchange has further intensified the crisis in the Middle East, increasing risks for civilians and expatriate communities across the region.
Netanyahu justifies attacking first
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that he coordinated with US President Donald Trump to launch strikes on Iran, arguing that the leadership of Ayatollah Khamenei was advancing what he described as an irreversible push toward nuclear weapons capability.
Netanyahu said Iran had accelerated the development of new nuclear facilities, including bunkers that would soon have been beyond the reach of US and Israeli military. He maintained that this narrowing window left little choice but to act swiftly.
Speaking to Fox News, Netanyahu alleged that Tehran had begun constructing additional sites designed to protect both its ballistic missile network and its nuclear activities. He claimed these bunkers were being built in a way that would make them effectively impervious to attack within months, prompting what he portrayed as urgent action.
Military offensive to end soon, says Netanyahu
Netanyahu denied dragging the US in an “endless war” against Iran and said that the military offensive will end soon.
“I hear people are telling you that you’re going to have an endless war here — You’re not going to have an endless war because… this terror regime in Iran is at its weakest point” since its founding, Netanyahu told Fox News in an interview. “This is going to be a quick and decisive action,” he asserted.
Rubio says Netanyahu’s determination to act forced US hand
Meanwhile, Trump has maintained that the US military offensive against Iran, codenamed ‘Operation Epic Fury’, could last up to four weeks. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington moved ahead with the pre-emptive strikes after concluding that Israel was set to attack Iran and that US forces would inevitably face retaliation.
Offering a fresh account of the administration’s sudden decision to join the conflict, Rubio argued that once it became clear Israel would act, Iranian reprisals against American troops were all but certain. That assessment, he said, compelled the United States to strike first.
The explanation came as senior officials briefed members of Congress for the first time since President Donald Trump authorised air operations over the weekend. Lawmakers received the closed-door update at the US Capitol ahead of an expected vote in the House of Representatives on a war powers resolution that could, in theory, pressure the president to halt military action against Iran.
US President Donald Trump blamed his predecessors for the Iran nuclear threat (File photo: AP). 
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