Trump Issues Stern Warning to Iran: 'Will Not Stand for It'
President Donald Trump reacted Thursday after the U.S. Navy announced one of its high-altitude drones had been shot down over the Persian Gulf region by an Iranian surface-to-air missile.
“Iran made a big mistake,” Trump told reporters during an Oval Office meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, according to a White House media pool report. “This drone was in international waters, clearly. We have it all documented scientifically not just words. And they made a very bad mistake.”
“I find it hard to believe it was intentional, and it could have been someone who was loose and stupid,” Trump said.
BREAKING: Pres. Trump says he finds it “hard to believe” Iran’s downing of U.S. drone was intentional: “I have a feeling that it was a mistake.”
“It’s all going to work out,” the president says. https://t.co/VpLpDTcdeq https://t.co/aRGgYKXhrv
— ABC News (@ABC) June 20, 2019
As for how the United States will respond, Trump did not provide specifics.
“You’ll find out,” he told the media.
The president appeared confident that “it’s all going to work out.”
But Trump also made it clear that Iran’s actions were unacceptable.
“This country will not stand for it, that’s what I can tell you,” he said, according to Fox News.
Trump’s remarks came after a U.S. Central Command spokesperson said in a statement that reports coming from Iran that claim the drone was flying over the Islamic Republic are absolutely “false.”
“This was an unprovoked attack on a U.S. surveillance asset in international airspace,” the spokesperson, Capt. Bill Urban, said.
The White House has invited congressional leadership — including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, as well as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, both of California — to a briefing Thursday afternoon on the Iran situation.
The White House invited members of Congress to a briefing on Iran at the WH at 3 today on Iran, including Pelosi, McCarthy, McConnell, Schumer and the chairs and RMs on House and Senate intel and armed services committees, according to 2 sources.
Trump expected to attend
— Nicholas Fandos (@npfandos) June 20, 2019
“We have to be strong and strategic about how we protect our interests. We also cannot be reckless in what we do. I don’t think the president wants to go to war. There’s no appetite for going to war in our country,” Pelosi said at her weekly news conference Thursday, NBC News reported.
“This is a dangerous neighborhood. A miscalculation on either side could provoke something that could be very bad in terms of security and our interests,” the House speaker added.
According to Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander Gen. Hossein Salami, Iran shot down the drone to convey a “clear message” to the U.S.
“We do not have any intention for war with any country, but we are fully ready for war,” Salami said in a televised address.
Trump’s comments from the Oval Office, meanwhile, echoed the same sentiment that he expressed in a morning tweet.
Iran made a very big mistake!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 20, 2019
“Iran made a very big mistake!” the president wrote.
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