The White House press secretary defended President Donald Trump's remarks that "a whole civilisation will die" if his Iran demands weren't met, calling it a “very strong threat that led to results”.
Trump, over the course of a single day, went from threatening Iran with “annihilation” to proclaiming that the battered Islamic Republic's leadership had presented a “workable” plan that led him to agree to a 14-day ceasefire that he hopes will pave the way to end the nearly six-week war.
Trump had given Iran until 12pm (NZT) yesterday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, otherwise "a whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again".
"I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will," Trump said.
Trump’s threats against Iran escalated over the past weeks, culminating in his recent warning.
The ceasefire was announced later that day.
Asked about Trump’s threat to annihilate Iranian civilisation, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended it as a “very strong threat that led to results”.
“I think it was a very, very strong threat from the president of the United States that led the Iranian regime to cave to their knees and ask for a ceasefire and agree to reopening the Strait of Hormuz,” Leavitt said at a press briefing.
She said any suggestion that Iran had the moral high ground was “insulting.”
“His very tough rhetoric and his tough negotiating style are what have led to the result that you are all witnessing today,” Leavitt said, adding that Iran said they wanted a ceasefire because “they no longer could tolerate being bombed".
“The world should take his word very seriously,” Leavitt said.
The United States and Iran both claimed victory after reaching the agreement, and world leaders expressed relief, even as more drones and missiles hit Iran and Gulf Arab countries.
The fresh violence threatened to scuttle what US Vice President JD Vance called a "fragile" deal.
"Aggression towards Lebanon is aggression towards Iran," General Seyed Majid Mousavi, aerospace commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, wrote on X. He warned that Iranian forces were preparing a "heavy response" without revealing details.
Iran accused the US of violating three clauses of its framework for a deal.
All sides have presented vastly different versions of the terms. Iran said the deal would allow it to formalise its new practice of charging ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said the US would work with Iran to remove buried enriched uranium, though Iran did not confirm that.
The ceasefire requires a “free” reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which includes no tolls imposed by Iran, said Leavitt, describing Trump’s thinking.
A regional official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said the ceasefire plans included allowing both Iran and Oman to impose new fees on ships transiting through the strait.
Leavitt referenced Trump’s Truth Social post from Tuesday in which he said the agreement was conditional on the “COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING” of the strait. She added that “that’s very plain language and it should be taken at face value.”
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