During a news conference at the NATO summit in the Netherlands on Wednesday, former US President Donald Trump made several inaccurate statements about the war in Ukraine, US inflation, and the fight against ISIS. He reiterated his unproven claim that recent US military strikes on Iranian nuclear sites had “obliterated” the facilities. However, early US intelligence assessments indicate that the core components of Iran’s nuclear program were not completely destroyed and that the strikes likely only delayed the program by a few months. The US continues to evaluate the impact of the strikes.
When reminded of his earlier promise to end Russia’s war in Ukraine in “24 hours,” Trump insisted the statement was sarcastic, despite extensive evidence showing he made the pledge seriously on multiple occasions during his campaign. CNN found at least 53 instances where Trump vowed to conclude the conflict swiftly if re-elected.
Trump also made misleading claims about US inflation and the previous battle against ISIS, which fact-checkers found to be false. His remarks at the summit have raised questions about his credibility and the accuracy of his statements on critical international issues.
In addition to these false claims, Trump cast doubt on the US commitment to NATO’s mutual defense clause, Article 5, further unsettling alliance members during the summit. Despite these controversies, Trump highlighted his role in brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran and touted increased NATO defense spending commitments.
