Pete Hegseth claims decisive US military victory over Iran
- By Reuters -
- Apr 08, 2026
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday that the United States has had a decisive military victory over Iran and that Tehran’s missile program has been functionally destroyed.
Hegseth and General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke to reporters a day after President Donald Trump from the brink of a threatened full-on assault on Iran on Tuesday night, two hours before a deadline he had set for Tehran to open the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.
Caine said U.S. military objectives in Iran have been met but the ceasefire is a pause and forces remain ready to resume combat.
Pete Hegseth said the U.S. military was “hanging around” in the Middle East to ensure Iran complies with the two-week ceasefire and to monitor the country’s enriched uranium stockpile.
“On the uranium, we’re watching it. We know what they have, and they will give it up, and we’ll get it. We’ll take it if we have to,” Hegseth told reporters.
US says military objectives in Iran met but still ready for combat
Speaking alongside U.S. Defense secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force General Dan Caine said the U.S. had met its military objectves in Iran.
He said the U.S. remained ready to resume combat if needed.
“A ceasefire is a pause and the joint force remains ready if ordered or called upon, to resume combat operations with the same speed and precision as we’ve demonstrated over the last 38 days and we hope that that is not the case,” he said.
Caine also said the joint forces had struck more than 13,000 targets during the Iran operation.
He added that 80% of Iran’s air defense systems and more than 90% of Iran’s conventional navy fleet had been destroyed.
Trump says nations supplying Iran with weapons face 50% tariff
In a follow up post, Trump said that any country supplying Iran with military weapons will face immediate 50% tariffs with no exemptions.
Between 2021 and 2025, all of Iran’s imported arms came from Russia, based on data recorded by SIPRI.