American naval power overwhelms Iranian aggression as Washington pushes Tehran toward a historic nuclear surrender agreement.
US President Donald Trump declared Thursday night that negotiations with Iran are still ongoing despite a dramatic exchange of fire earlier in the day near the Strait of Hormuz involving American destroyers and Iranian forces.
Speaking to reporters, Trump revealed that Pakistan had urged Washington not to fully pursue “Project Freedom,” the US naval operation designed to escort commercial ships safely through the Strait while diplomatic talks with Tehran continue.
“We’re negotiating with the Iranians. We have, you probably heard, we took our three destroyers and we rammed them through some pretty big stuff today, and we knocked the hell out of them,” Trump said while describing the confrontation with Iranian forces.
The President emphasized that American warships suffered no damage and no US personnel were injured despite Iranian missile and drone attacks.
“The destroyers weren’t hurt in any way. The people weren’t hurt, but they were firing at us, and we were firing back at them. And our firepower was a hell of a lot stronger than theirs,” Trump added.
Trump also disclosed additional details about the US proposal currently being discussed with Iran, rejecting claims that the offer was merely symbolic or limited in scope.
“Well, it’s more than a one-page offer. It’s an offer that basically said they will not have nuclear weapons, they are going to hand us the nuclear dust and many other things that we want,” Trump stated.
When asked whether Iran had already agreed to those conditions, Trump responded skeptically, saying Tehran frequently changes positions between negotiating factions.
“They have agreed. When they agree it doesn’t mean much because the next day they forgot they agreed,” Trump remarked, adding that the US is dealing with “different sets of leaders” inside the Iranian regime.
The President reiterated that the United States will never permit Iran to obtain nuclear weapons under any circumstances.
“We’re not going to give them the right to have a nuclear weapon, there’s zero chance,” Trump stressed.
Earlier in the day, senior US officials confirmed that American forces launched strikes against Iranian targets including Qeshm Port, Bandar Abbas, and the Bandar Kargan naval checkpoint in Minab after Iranian forces attacked US destroyers transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian media claimed its navy targeted American warships with missiles and drones, while Tehran accused Washington of violating the ceasefire agreement.
US Central Command, however, stated that American forces responded in self-defense after Iranian units launched unprovoked attacks against US naval vessels operating in international waters.
Despite the confrontation, Trump insisted during an interview with ABC News that the ceasefire technically remains active and described the American retaliation as merely a “love tap.”
In a later Truth Social post, Trump sharply warned Tehran that future responses would be far more severe if Iran failed to finalize an agreement quickly.
“We’ll knock them out a lot harder, and a lot more violently, in the future, if they don’t get their Deal signed, FAST!” Trump wrote.
The President had earlier suspended the full implementation of Project Freedom to allow diplomatic talks with Iran to continue, even while maintaining the powerful US naval blockade around Iranian shipping routes.
Trump also reiterated that if Iran refuses to comply with American demands regarding its nuclear program and regional behavior, large-scale bombing operations could resume with far greater intensity.
