President Donald Trump joked in a late-night remark that if the new U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding does not work out, he will blame Vice President J.D. Vance. Separately, Trump stated that Iran "has to have ballistic missiles" because other countries have them. The comments come amid ongoing debate over the emerging Iran deal.
Late Thursday, President Donald Trump joked that if the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding fails, he will blame Vice President J.D. Vance — a lighthearted twist on his earlier pattern of attributing policy outcomes to advisors. Separately, Trump stated that Iran "has to have ballistic missiles" because other countries have them, further fleshing out a position he began articulating earlier Wednesday.
That stance emerged across a series of reports on Wednesday evening (all published at 19:32 Jerusalem this past Wednesday, Jun 17). The Zioneer first reported Trump saying Iran should retain some ballistic missiles because regional states like Saudi Arabia also possess them, and that advisors demanding total disarmament were "not very smart." Trump subsequently estimated the U.S. had destroyed 84–85% of Iran's missiles, with the rest buried and inaccessible. He later clarified he did not say Iran *deserves* missiles — only that denying them is hard while others have them. Throughout the evening, he also suggested Syria's Abu Mohammad al-Julani should handle Hezbollah surgically, dismissed requests for continued bombing as "stupid," and asserted that "regime change has occurred" in Iran, with proxies and missiles to be addressed "later." Vice President J.D. Vance, earlier that same day (17:12 Jerusalem, Jun 17), said some critics "just want bombing to continue" regardless of U.S. interests.
The Zioneer previously reported (Jun 17, 14:04 Jerusalem) that the MOU is not final and Trump will resume bombing if the deal fails standards. On Jun 11 (07:20 Jerusalem), The Zioneer covered the second consecutive night of U.S. strikes on Iran and Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. envoy Waltz said on Jun 14 (17:27 Jerusalem) that Trump fully intends to close the deal, noting Hezbollah's dislike of Iranian concessions.
What remains open: Trump's late-night remarks are offhand and do not constitute a formal policy shift. The precise terms of the ballistic missile outcome — and whether Iran's retention of missiles will be enshrined in the MOU — have not been specified.
14 developments
- DevelopingVance says Trump has 'plenty of alternatives' if Iran nuclear talks fail
- StrongVP Vance: If Iran fails to deliver on deal, US will destroy its nuclear program and military
- DevelopingTrump warns of commando strike on Iran if nuclear deal collapses
- DevelopingTrump: Bombing Iran 'will probably happen' if they don't abide by deal
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