Ever since the war between Iran and the US began on February 28, one thing that has been constantly shifting is US President Donald Trump’s stance and his claims on US victory. It started with Trump’s “we have won” narrative to his latest tweet laced with expletives as he asked Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump, since the beginning of the war, has oscillated between US winning the war, ending the war and the need to attack Iran–the only constant here being his flip-flop in his statements.
For example, at a White House press briefing, Trump said the US doesn’t need the Strait of Hormuz, even after the key energy passage became a point of contention between the two sides.
Earlier, Trump also said negotiations were underway between Iran and the US, a claim that drew a rather sarcastic response from Tehran, with a top Iranian military spokesperson asking Trump if he was negotiating with himself.
Here are some instances of how Trump oscillated between the tough talks and soft stance:
Trump’s expletive-laden post
In a stark social media post on Sunday, Trump said: “Open the f**kin’ Strait, you crazy b****rds, or you’ll be living in Hell.”
A day before his April 6 deadline to Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Trump went all out against Iran and said, “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day”.
While Iran rejected the US peace plan despite Trump’s stark warning, Trump termed Tehran’s counterproposal as a ‘significant proposal’.
“They made a proposal, and it’s a significant proposal. It’s a significant step. It’s not good enough,” Trump told reporters at an annual White House Easter event, referring to Iran.
April 6 deadline extension for Hormuz
Earlier, Trump extended the deadline for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz by 10 days, pushing it to April 6. He said the extension was being granted at the request of the Iranian government, a claim Iran rejected.
“As per the Iranian Government’s request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M,” Trump wrote on X.
‘The US doesn’t need Hormuz’
While at one point the entire Middle East conflict centred around Iran’s virtual closure of Hormuz, Trump last week said that the US doesn’t need the strategic energy passage.
Trump was criticising the European allies for not extending ample support to the US in its war against Iran when he made the remark. “We are there to protect Europe from Russia. In theory, it doesn’t affect us; we have a big, fat, beautiful ocean. But we are there to protect NATO, but they are not there to protect us.”
Trump’s praise for Iran
While repeatedly claiming that Iran’s military capabilities have been destroyed to a great extent, Trump on Monday termed Iranians as ‘capable fighters’ and ‘tough people’. “The enemy is strong, not so strong as they were about a month ago. They are not too strong at all right now,” Trump said.
‘Iran blown off the map’
On March 22, Trump claimed that the US had ‘blown Iran off the map’ and that the US had achieved its goals a week ahead of schedule. However, the war continues alongside the Hormuz deadlock.
