Washington, March 7 (IANS) US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that American forces have inflicted severe damage on Iran’s military infrastructure, claiming Tehran’s naval and air capabilities had been crippled during the latest phase of fighting.

Speaking at the Shield of the Americas Summit in Doral, Florida, Trump said the US military operations had achieved sweeping battlefield results.

“Tremendous progress has been made, as you’ve probably been watching,” he added.

“I built the military and rebuilt it and made it really strong in my first administration.”

Trump said that American forces had rapidly dismantled key Iranian assets.

“We’ve knocked out 42 Navy ships, some of them very large, in three days. That was the end of the Navy,” he added.

He also claimed Iran’s communications network had been disabled.

“We knocked out their Air Force, we knocked out their communications, and all telecommunications are gone,” Trump said, adding: “I don’t know how they communicate, but I guess they will figure something out.”

The US President described the operation as necessary to counter a nuclear threat.

“They (Iran) were very close to a nuclear weapon,” Trump said, adding: “They would have had one if we didn’t do our B-2 hit ‘Midnight Hammer’.”

He said the operation was aimed at preventing a larger global crisis.

“We did the world a favour,” Trump said, adding: “They (Iran) are crazy, and they would have used it.”

The US President also praised the strength of the US Armed Forces.

“There’s no military like it on Earth, not even close,” he said.

Trump added that the military campaign had been effective but acknowledged the human cost of war.

He said he would travel to Dover to meet the families of American service members killed in the conflict.

“I’ll be leaving for Dover. Very sad situation to greet the families of the heroes coming home from Iran,” Trump added.

“There’s always, when it comes to war, there’s always that, but we’re gonna keep it to a minimum.”

Trump framed the campaign as part of a broader effort to stabilise the Middle East and deter future threats.

“It’s gonna be something, a service that we’re really providing, not for the Middle East, but for the world,” he said.

–IANS

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