Mike Waltz responds to prospect of bombing Iran's nuclear sites: 'Never take anything off the table'

WASHINGTON: The United States has signaled it is prepared to consider all possible actions against Iran, with Mike Waltz making clear that “all options” remain on the table. The warning follows a message from President Trump, who said on Truth Social that Iran must reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face potential US strikes targeting its power plants, starting with the largest.

Mike Waltz emphasizes the importance of understanding the IRGC

Speaking on 'Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,' Waltz said he would not rule out any action against Iran from President Trump.

When asked if the US might bomb a nuclear power plant, Waltz did not deny the possibility. "I would never take anything off the table for the president," he mentioned.

Waltz also said it is important to understand that the IRGC, which is considered to be an alleged terrorist group by the US and some European countries, controls a large part of Iran’s infrastructure, economy, and government systems.

"The important point here is to understand the IRGC, a declared terrorist organization, not only by us but a number of European countries, controls a huge swath of Iran's critical infrastructure, their economy, and certainly many of their governing institutions."

He added that if the goal is to weaken Iran’s military and defense systems, then all options should remain open. Waltz said, "And so to the extent we're degrading their military capability and their defense industrial base, all options should be on the table, and the president's made that very clear."

Mike Waltz defends potential strikes

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said last week that attacks on energy infrastructure by either side could be considered a war crime. In response, Mike Waltz said that Iran’s government controls a lot of important infrastructure and uses it to control its people, attack nearby countries, and move toward building nuclear weapons.

"When you have a regime that has its grips in so much critical infrastructure that's using it to further, not only the repression of its own people, to attack its neighbors and in contravention of U.N. sanctions, to march towards a nuclear weapon, then that makes those legitimate targets," he stated.

When asked about how attacks on energy systems could affect water supplies, Waltz said "I have no doubt that the president, the Pentagon, their team, will ensure that what they target is geared towards the military infrastructure of Iran."

Trump’s warning to attack Iran’s power plants came a day after he said other countries should help guard and manage the Strait of Hormuz. Waltz said these two ideas can both happen at the same time.

He also added, "So we are seeing our allies come around as they should, but at the same time, the president is not going to stand for this regime as it's threatened and tried for five decades to hold the world's energy supplies hostage under its genocidal intent."