Trump Claims US Control Over Strategic Iran Waterways

New Delhi, August 21, 2026 US President Donald Trump has defended his military actions against Iran, claiming that the United States is moving closer to taking full control of strategic waterways connected to the country. Reiterating his firm stance against Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, Trump said the objective justified the possible economic impact of the conflict on American consumers. Speaking in an interview with his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen on 77 WABC Radio, Trump said, “Now with Iran, they will never have a nuclear weapon. We’re controlling, essentially controlling and soon controlling the Straits. We’re doing very well with Iran,” Trump said. He did not specify the waterways he was referring to in the portion of the interview that was released. Trump also claimed that Iran’s navy, air force and leadership had been severely weakened, making the chances of reaching a negotiated settlement more difficult. “Part of the problem is so many of the leaders are gone. It’s not easy to make a deal. Nobody knows who’s leading,” Trump said. Trump acknowledged that the conflict could lead to higher energy and petrol prices in the United States but maintained that stopping Iran from developing a nuclear weapon was necessary. “And I tell them, they’ll be, uh, a little higher for your energy cost, but they’ll be a little bit higher for gasoline. But we have to make a journey to the Middle East because we can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon,” he said. Claiming that Iran had been “militarily wiped out”, Trump said the country had lost significant missile and drone production capabilities and was also facing economic pressure. “The reason I did it, and we had no choice, and I would’ve done it again a hundred times, they cannot have a nuclear weapon, and they won’t be having a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. Defending the use of B-2 bombers against Iranian nuclear facilities, Trump said the strikes were carried out because Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon. “When we hit them with the B-2 bombers, they were exactly two weeks away from having a nuclear weapon,” he said. “And that’s why I had to do it, because you cannot let them have that kind of a weapon.” He also claimed that a nuclear-armed Iran would have threatened Israel and other Middle Eastern countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain. “There would be no Israel if there was no Donald Trump,” he said, adding that he believed the Middle East would have been “entirely wiped out”, while Israel “definitely would have been wiped out”. Trump also spoke about Venezuela, immigration, tariffs and the US economy, claiming that his tariff policies were encouraging manufacturing and investment to return to the United States. Overall, Trump presented his actions against Iran as a necessary effort to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, even as he recognised the possible rise in energy costs for Americans.