Trump rejects nuclear option against Iran, mentions ‘mother of all bombs’
U.S. President Donald Trump has ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran, saying the United States can achieve its military objectives without them, while leaving open the possibility of further strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports, citing Anadolu Agency.
In an interview with Newsmax, Trump was asked about reports that his administration was considering using the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB), commonly known as the “mother of all bombs,” against Iran, potentially after the U.S. midterm elections.
Trump emphasized that the weapon is conventional rather than nuclear.
“The mother of all bombs is not nuclear,” he said, adding that the United States had no need to use nuclear weapons.
However, the president indicated that Washington could launch additional attacks on Iran's nuclear infrastructure, specifically mentioning Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily fortified underground site associated with Iran's nuclear programme.
“Now we're looking at Pickaxe Mountain. We may have to go there. We'll take a shot at that one. We'll knock it out fast,” Trump said in the interview.
Trump also said he did not anticipate deploying U.S. ground troops to Iran.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Trump cast doubt on Zacharia’s future as White House press secretary.