President Trump used a solemn 25th anniversary commemoration of the Sept. 11 attacks at the Pentagon Friday to draw a hard line on Iran, declaring the country will never be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons.
Speaking to a crowd of military service members and officials, Trump framed the ongoing conflict with Iran as an extension of the broader war on terror that began after the 2001 attacks. “In the generations since 9/11, American sons and daughters have traveled to the darkest corners of the Earth and done battle with a shadowy enemy so that our children might once again know carefree days and cloudless skies,” the president said.
He then honored American troops who have served in the war on terror over the past quarter-century. “For 25 years, our best and bravest have kept America safe, and today, we salute every member of the United States military who served in the war on terror. It is a war on sick, horrible terror. We salute our first responders and law enforcement and we love them. And we salute the service members working right now to ensure the world’s number one sponsor of terror, the Islamic Republic of Iran, will never, ever have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said, drawing scattered applause from the otherwise largely silent crowd.
The comments come as the administration continues to prosecute an ongoing military conflict with Iran, which Trump claimed earlier this week will be wrapped up after the midterm elections, though similar timelines predicted by the administration in the past have repeatedly slipped.
While Trump marked the anniversary at the Pentagon, Vice President JD Vance traveled to New York to represent the administration at the Ground Zero ceremony there. Trump had originally been expected to attend the New York event but ultimately did not, with reports indicating he opted out after learning he would not be permitted to deliver remarks during the ceremony. Both Trump and Vance have disputed that characterization of events. Trump took to social media to blast the reporting as “more Corrupt News,” insisting he has attended the New York ceremony many times over the years and noting that no one typically speaks during what he called a “solemn ceremony.”
The president has historically taken a more skeptical view of post-9/11 military interventions in the Middle East, having previously criticized former President George W. Bush’s decision to invade Iraq. Friday’s remarks, however, doubled down on framing the current Iran conflict as a continuation of the broader fight against terrorism that began on American soil 25 years ago.
