J.D. Vance says US at war with Iran's nuclear programme, not Iran
US Vice-President J.D. Vance accused Iran of not negotiating in good faith, which he said served as a catalyst for US strikes. PHOTO: AFP
J.D. Vance says US at war with Iran's nuclear programme, not Iran
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WASHINGTON - US Vice-President J.D. Vance said on June 22 the US was not at war with Iran but at war with its nuclear programme, adding the programme had been pushed back by a very long time due to American strikes ordered by President Donald Trump.
Mr Trump said he had 'obliterated' Iran's main nuclear sites in strikes overnight with massive bunker-busting bombs, joining Israel's assault against its Middle East rival in a significant new escalation of conflict in the region.
'We're not at war with Iran. We're at war with Iran's nuclear program,' Mr Vance said in an interview on NBC's 'Meet the Press with Kristen Welker' show
'I think that we have really pushed their programme back by a very long time. I think that it's going to be many, many years before the Iranians are going to be able to develop a nuclear weapon.'
Mr Vance accused Iran of not negotiating in good faith, which he said served as a catalyst for US strikes.
The US had been in diplomatic talks with Iran about Tehran's nuclear programme.
Tehran vowed to defend itself, while UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was 'gravely alarmed' by the US bombing of Iranian nuclear sites.
'We don't want a regime change,' Mr Vance added. 'We do not want to protract this... We want to end the nuclear programme, and then we want to talk to the Iranians about a long-term settlement here.'
Mr Vance said Mr Trump made the final decision to strike Iran right before the strikes took place, and that Washington has received some 'indirect' messages from Tehran since the strikes.
Mr Vance said the US 'had no interest in boots on the ground.'
Mr Trump said on June 20 he was going to decide in the next two weeks about direct US involvement in the Israel-Iran war which began with Israel's attacks on Iran on June 13.
The war has raised alarm in a region already on edge since the start of Israel's war in Gaza in October 2023.
US ally Israel is the only country in the Middle East widely believed to have nuclear weapons, and says it struck Iran to prevent Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons.
Iran, which says its nuclear programme is peaceful, is a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, while Israel is not.
Many Democratic US lawmakers said Mr Trump's actions were unconstitutional and that it was the US Congress that had the power to declare war on foreign countries.
Mr Vance responded to that criticism by saying Mr Trump had 'clear authority to act to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.' REUTERS
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