Washington, March 7 – The White House said that US military operations against Iran are rapidly achieving their objectives, as President Donald Trump is simultaneously pushing to expand American weapons production and considering the future political leadership of Iran.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at the White House that the ongoing military campaign – dubbed Operation Epic Fury – is progressing quickly and could meet its goals within weeks.
“What I want to tell you is what President Trump has already outlined, which is that the achievable objectives of Operation Epic Fury are expected to last about four to six weeks, and we are well on our way to achieving those objectives,” she told reporters.
Leavitt said that the United States has already inflicted major damage on Iran’s military capability, particularly its naval forces.
“We have successfully neutralized Iran’s Navy, and we know that we have sunk more than 30 Iranian vessels and ships. Their Navy has now been deemed combat ineffective,” she said.
According to the White House, the operation is also aimed at eliminating the ballistic missile threat posed by Iran to US troops and bases in the region.
“We have successfully neutralized the ballistic missile threat that Iran posed to the United States and our troops and bases in the region. We have done a tremendous job,” Leavitt said.
She added that the results are already visible on the battlefield.
“Just six days into the retaliatory ballistic missile strikes from Iran, 90 per cent of them have been destroyed,” she said.
The press secretary also said that Iranian-backed proxy groups have not mounted a significant response.
“We have seen Hezbollah and the Houthis hardly putting up a fight over the course of the last six days,” she said.
Leavitt stressed that the broader objective of the operation is to remove the threat that Iran poses to the United States and its allies.
“Ultimately, the president has made it very clear, he wants to eliminate the threat of Iran to the United States, and Operation Epic Fury is well on its way to doing that,” she said.
She also elaborated on Trump’s remarks about Iran’s “unconditional surrender,” saying that the term refers to a point when Tehran no longer poses a threat to the United States.
“What the President means is that when he, as commander in chief of the US Armed Forces, determines that Iran no longer poses a threat to the United States of America, and the goals of Operation Epic Fury have been fully realized, then Iran will essentially be in a state of unconditional surrender,” she said.
Leavitt suggested that the Iranian leadership structure has already been severely weakened.
“They don't have a lot of people to say that for them because the United States and the state of Israel have completely eliminated nearly 50 leaders of the former terrorist regime,” she said.
Asked about Iran’s political future, Leavitt said that US intelligence agencies are evaluating possible leadership scenarios in the country.
“I know there are a number of people that intelligence agencies and the United States government are looking at, but I won’t get into any further details,” she said.
She also downplayed reports that Russia may be providing intelligence support to Iran, saying that the battlefield situation shows that the US military remains firmly in control.
“It clearly is not making a difference with respect to the military operations in Iran because we are completely decimating them,” she said.
The press secretary also confirmed that Trump was scheduled to meet with defense contractors at the White House later in the day to discuss increasing US weapons production capacity.
She said the meeting was intended to reinforce the administration’s “aggressive and fierce support for rapidly increasing the ability of US manufacturers to produce American-made weapons.”
