Trump says the U.S. has “actually left” Iran’s military alone in a recent interview, after claiming in April it was completely destroyed

President Donald Trump said in a recent interview that his administration has chosen to leave Iran’s military intact, describing the force as “somewhat moderate.” This marks a clear shift from statements he made in April, when he said the United States had completely destroyed Iran’s military.

Trump made the comments during the May 30, 2026 edition of My View on Fox News, hosted by Lara Trump. He drew a distinction between Iran’s military and other parts of its leadership, saying the latter had been targeted and removed.

He said, “Their Navy is totally gone, 100 percent. Their Air Force is totally gone, 100 percent. Their military, we’ve sort of left it alone – because we think that their military is somewhat moderate. They have other people that aren’t moderate.” 

Trump’s April statements directly contradict his May interview comments

“We’ve taken them out. We’ve taking different forms of leadership out. We’ve actually left their military alone. People would be surprised to hear that. Because mistakes have been made in wars where you wipe out everybody and then you have a country that for 40 years can never rebuild,” he added. 

These remarks conflict with what Trump said in early April. On April 11, he posted on Truth Social: “The United States has completely destroyed Iran’s Military, including their entire Navy and Air Force, and everything else. Their Leadership is DEAD! The Strait of Hormuz will soon be open, and the empty ships are rushing to the United States to ‘load up.'” 

Trump had also boasted about Iran’s military being wiped out just days into the conflict, rating the operation highly. Mediaite points out that the following day, on April 12, Trump spoke to reporters after Air Force One landed in Maryland and repeated similar claims about Iran’s armed forces. 

He told reporters, “Their military is destroyed. Their whole Navy is underwater. You know that 158 ships are gone. Their navy is gone. Most of their mine droppers are gone.” The recent interview comments came as the administration is reportedly pushing for stricter terms in ongoing negotiations with Iran. 

Iran has previously criticized U.S. military actions during diplomatic talks, accusing Washington of pursuing military operations whenever a diplomatic solution was within reach. According to an unnamed senior administration official, Trump is requesting specific changes to a proposed agreement, particularly around the timeline and how the United States would handle enriched uranium.

No official clarification has been provided by the administration to reconcile the April statements with the May interview remarks. The White House has not publicly addressed the difference between Trump’s claim that Iran’s military was fully destroyed and his later statement that it was deliberately left alone.