Trump rules out nuclear strike on Iran but won't rule out 'mother of all bombs'
In an interview with Newsmax, the US president said he would not use nuclear weapons against Iran, but declined to say if he has authorised the 'mother of all bombs'.
At a glance
- Trump told Newsmax he would not use nuclear weapons against Iran, his first explicit ruling-out of an atomic strike.
- He said the GBU-43/B MOAB, which CNN reported may be used, is 'not nuclear' but declined to say if he authorised it.
- Trump said another strike on Iran's nuclear sites may come soon, possibly after the US midterms on November 3.
United States President Donald Trump has explicitly ruled out using a nuclear weapon against Iran and, in an interview published on Thursday by the US news site Newsmax, declined to say whether he has authorised the use of the country's most powerful non-nuclear bomb, known as the "mother of all bombs".
"I wouldn't use nuclear. We don't have to. We're the greatest nuclear power in the world," Trump told Newsmax. The comments were his first definitive statement on the nuclear question, after speculation during the US and Israel's war on Iran about a possible atomic conflict. He also ruled out a tactical nuclear weapon.
MOAB 'is not nuclear'
CNN has reported that the administration is considering using the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB). Asked whether it amounted to a "tactical nuclear" weapon, Trump rejected the description: "Well, the mother of all bombs is not nuclear. It's not nuclear at all. This is just an extremely large bomb." He declined to say whether he had authorised its use in Iran.
The MOAB carries about 8,500kg (18,000 pounds) of high explosives and weighs nearly 10 tonnes. It is just over nine metres long and must be dropped by large Lockheed C-130 Hercules transporters, because stealth bombers are too small to carry it. It is designed to explode a few metres above the ground, sending out fireballs that can blast buildings and hard-surface structures within a 1km radius. In tests, its mushroom cloud has been seen 32km away, according to the US Air Force.
Another phase thought likely
Trump suggested renewed strikes are likely in the near future, possibly after the US midterm elections on November 3, and pointed to Pickaxe Mountain, where Tehran is believed to be hiding a nuclear facility beneath layers of granite. He argued the US cannot end the war now because it must ensure Iran cannot produce a nuclear weapon, saying that if Iran had one it would use it "instantaneously". He said the war would end "very soon", by force or diplomacy, and that oil prices would then drop. Asked about putting troops on the ground, he said: "No, I don't see that, I don't see it."
Brussels-based military and weapons analyst Elijah Magnier told Al Jazeera that the MOAB's charge produces devastating blast effects against exposed personnel, equipment and vulnerable structures, but said it is doubtful whether a surface weapon of that kind would be effective against deeply buried nuclear installations. Iran's terrain could also be difficult for large cargo aircraft to access, he added.
Tactical nuclear weapons are smaller munitions designed for the battlefield, with yields of between 0.3 and 50 kilotons. The US, Russia and North Korea have them in their arsenals; no country has ever used one, and they are largely unregulated by international treaties.
Iran has vowed to respond to escalatory strikes by targeting oil and digital infrastructure in neighbouring Gulf states, and senior defence officials have warned Iran would invade its neighbours if the US launched a ground operation.
Source: Al Jazeera.
Questions and answers
- Has Trump ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran?
- Yes. In an interview published on Thursday by Newsmax, Trump said: 'I wouldn't use nuclear. We don't have to.' He also ruled out a tactical nuclear weapon, in his first definitive statement on the issue.
- What is the MOAB 'mother of all bombs'?
- The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb carries about 8,500kg of high explosives, weighs nearly 10 tonnes and detonates a few metres above the ground. Trump said it is not nuclear, and declined to say whether he had authorised its use in Iran.
- Could the US send ground troops into Iran?
- Trump said he does not see troops on the ground: 'No, I don't see that, I don't see it.' Earlier in the war he had hinted at sending forces to retrieve about 400kg of highly enriched uranium.
