On Wednesday, the White House celebrated the announcement of a ceasefire, claiming that the United States had surpassed all military goals in the Iran conflict within the initially planned timeline.
During a press briefing on Tuesday night, White House press secretary Caroline Levitt pointed out this success after President Donald Trump declared a two-week ceasefire.
“The two-week ceasefire announced by President Trump is a significant win for the United States, made achievable through the efforts of our military,” Levitt stated to the press.
“At the start of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump conveyed that this operation would span four to six weeks, aimed at neutralizing the military threat from the Iranian regime.” she elaborated.
Levitt noted that the U.S. achieved and even exceeded its primary goals in slightly over five weeks into the conflict.
“The U.S. military has dismantled Iran’s defense manufacturing capabilities and severely limited the Iranian regime’s capacity to produce weapons used against Americans and to instigate global terror,” she explained.
“Iran’s ability to develop and stockpile ballistic missiles and long-range drones has regressed significantly over the past six weeks, since the inception of Operation Epic Fury,” she continued.
She mentioned that Iran’s navy has been incapacitated, its support for terrorism notably diminished, and it can no longer pursue nuclear capabilities due to the ongoing operations.
Levitt reported that more than 13,000 targets were engaged during the 38-day conflict, tallying 450 attacks on Iranian ballistic missiles and 800 on Iranian drone launch sites and storage facilities.
Explaining the ceasefire’s context, Levitt remarked that Iran’s initial 10-point proposal to conclude the war was “not earnest” and was rejected outright by President Trump, dismissing claims from certain media outlets that the U.S. had considered the proposal acceptable.
As President Trump’s deadline approached on Tuesday, the administration rolled out a “more logical, distinct condensed plan,” which Trump found “achievable” based on the U.S.’s 15-point proposal.
“The president aims for agreements that align with the best interests of the United States, and as long as the Strait of Hormuz remains unrestricted, the negotiation team will prioritize this over the next two weeks,” she added.
