Trump Targets Obama’s Iran Deal, Calls It ‘Disaster’ and Was ‘So Honored’ to Destroy It [WATCH]

President Donald Trump used a Wednesday night address focused on Iran to highlight his decision to terminate the 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated under former President Barack Obama, describing the deal as a failed policy that he said strengthened Tehran, as reported by Fox News.

During the remarks, Trump pointed to what he described as “tremendous progress” in the Middle East and defended ongoing military and strategic efforts, including Operation Epic Fury, which he said was “necessary for the safety of America and the security of the free world.”

The president also delivered a sharp assessment of Iran’s government, describing it as “fanatical,” “murderous” and “thuggish,” while warning that allowing the country to obtain nuclear weapons would pose a significant global threat.

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“The most violent and thuggish regime on Earth would be free to carry out their campaigns of terror, coercion, conquest, and mass murder from behind a nuclear shield. I will never let that happen, and neither should any of our past presidents,” Trump said.

Trump framed his approach to Iran as part of a broader effort spanning both of his terms in office, outlining actions he said were taken to counter Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

“I did many things during my two terms in office to stop the quest for nuclear weapons by Iran. First, and perhaps most importantly, I killed Gen. Qasem Soleimani in my first term. He was an evil genius, brilliant person, a horrible human being. The father of the roadside bomb,” Trump said.

“And then, very importantly, I terminated Barack Hussein Obama’s Iran nuclear deal. A disaster. Obama gave them $1.7 billion in cash – green, green cash. Took it out of banks from Virginia, D.C., and Maryland. All the cash they had.”

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Trump also criticized a $400 million cash payment delivered to Iran in January 2016, which he said was intended to “buy their respect and loyalty.”

“But it didn’t work,” Trump said.

“They laughed at our president and went on with their mission to have a nuclear bomb. His Iran deal would have led to a colossal arsenal of massive nuclear weapons for Iran, and they would have had them years ago, and they would have used them – would have been a different world. There would have been no Middle East and no Israel right now, in my opinion… Had I not terminated that terrible deal – I was so honored to do it. I was so proud to do it. It was so bad right from the beginning.”

Trump added that his administration is working to reverse what he described as policy failures from previous administrations.

“I am correcting the mistakes of past presidents,” Trump said, adding that he has taken steps that others were unwilling to pursue.

The agreement at the center of the criticism, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was finalized in 2015. The deal provided sanctions relief to Iran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program and international monitoring requirements.

The Obama administration maintained that the arrangement would move Iran further from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Critics of the agreement argued that it empowered Iran financially and strategically. Some pointed to reporting that the United States airlifted $400 million in cash to Tehran around the time four American prisoners were released.

The Obama administration said that the payment was not part of the nuclear agreement itself, but rather the first installment of a separate settlement tied to a decades-old dispute over pre-revolution arms deals.

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