Trump says he won’t use nuclear weapon against Iran: ‘I decimated them without it’
REPORTER: Would you use a nuclear weapon against Iran?
— Department of State (@StateDept) April 23, 2026
PRESIDENT TRUMP: No. Why would a stupid question like that be asked?
Why would l use a nuclear weapon when we’ve totally decimated Iran without it? A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody. pic.twitter.com/7hAlHLrNT4
WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump spoke with reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, April 23, when he said that he won’t use a nuclear weapon against Iran. He even stated that nobody should be allowed to use it.
During the question and answer session, when a reporter asked the Republican leader, “Would you use a nuclear weapon against Iran?” Trump got annoyed as he said, “No, I wouldn’t. We don’t need it. Why do I need it? Why would a stupid question like that be asked?”
Trump says he managed to 'decimate' Iran in a very conventional way
Trump then added, “Why would I use a nuclear weapon, when we’ve totally, in a very conventional way, decimated them without it. No, I wouldn’t use it. A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody.”
He has maintained that the US has the upper hand over Iran as the negotiations between the two countries go on. He even told reporters that he’s not “under time pressure,” but Tehran is.
“I took the country out militarily in the first four weeks. I took it out militarily. Now all we're doing is sitting back and seeing what the deal. And if they don't want to make a deal, then I'll finish it up militarily with the other 25 percent of the targets. We've hit 78 percent of the targets that we've wanted to hit,” Trump claimed.
Trump says he does not want to rush while negotiating with Iran
Reiterating the US’ apparent achievements against Iran in the ongoing conflict, Trump continued, “We've knocked out their manufacturing. We've knocked out their missile production. We've knocked out their drone production. We've knocked out everything.”
“In some cases, when I say knocked it out, 70, 80, 90 percent, it's amazing what we've done. So I've done that within that period of time that I mentioned. But I don't want to rush myself,” the Republican leader asserted.
Trump says government of Iran is 'seriously fractured'
This came after earlier this week, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire until Iran's “leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal.”
Trump: "STATEMENT OF PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP:
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 21, 2026
Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on… pic.twitter.com/NQBC0pzgOh
He also slammed the government of Iran by calling it “seriously fractured,” but also added that despite the ceasefire extension, the blockade of Iranian ports will continue.
Trump’s decision was called out by Mahdi Mohammadi, an advisor to the speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who described it as “a ploy to buy time for a surprise strike.”
“Trump's ceasefire extension means nothing. The losing side cannot dictate terms. The continuation of the siege is no different from bombardment and must be met with a military response. The time for Iran to take the initiative has come,” Mohammadi added.