Donald Trump has said his biggest fear in the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran would be regime change that brought in a leadership 'as bad as the previous person'. Speaking at an Oval Office news conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the US president was asked about the 'worst-case scenario' of the operation that led to the assassination of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Trump expressed confidence about superior US-Israeli force, saying: 'We have them very much beaten militarily'. However, he admitted that hopes Iran would soon turn a page with a less repressive government could easily be dashed. 'I guess the worst case would be we do this and then somebody takes over who's as bad as the previous person, right?' he said.
Turning to Europe's reactions, Trump threatened to cut off all trade with Spain after the Nato ally refused Washington permission for two jointly operated bases to be used in US strikes on Iran. 'Spain has been terrible,' Trump said, adding that he had told the Treasury secretary to 'cut off all dealings' with Spain.
Trump also lashed out at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has not joined the US-Israeli attack but did let US forces use UK bases. 'I'm not happy with the UK,' Trump said. 'This is not Winston Churchill that we're dealing with.'
Trump asserted that Iran was going to attack before he did, walking back comments by Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Israel triggered the war. 'I think they were going to attack first, and I didn't want that to happen,' he said.
