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US attacks Iran's nuclear facilities, UN chief warns of escalation of conflict

2025-06-22 08:58:48Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

President Donald Trump said the US military struck three Iranian nuclear sites as the United States became embroiled in the conflict between Israel and Iran, raising fears of a wider war in the Middle East.

Trump announced a "spectacular military success" on June 21, saying that US bombers had struck nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz and Esfahan during a joint effort with Israel to destroy Iran's nuclear program after diplomacy failed to bring Tehran back to the negotiating table.

"Everyone has heard these names for years as they built this incredibly destructive enterprise," Trump said during an address to the nation from the White House.

"Our goal was to destroy Iran's uranium enrichment capacity and stop the nuclear threat posed by the world's number one state sponsor of terrorism."

Trump, who just two days ago said he would decide "within two weeks" whether to join Israel in its efforts to destroy Iranian nuclear facilities, claimed that the attacks "completely destroyed" Iran's key uranium enrichment facilities.

"Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If it does not, the next attack will be much bigger and much easier," Trump said. Iran's future, according to the American president, is "either peace or tragedy," adding that there are still many targets in Iran that can be hit.

"If peace does not come soon, we will strike other targets with precision," he said, thanking the Israeli and American armies for carrying out the operation.

"I hope we don't need their services in this capacity anymore. I hope so," Trump said, speaking from the White House, with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth behind him.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi called the attacks "shameful" and warned that they "will have lasting consequences," in a post on X.

"Every member state of the United Nations should be alarmed by this extremely dangerous, illegal and criminal act," he said, adding that Iran "reserves to itself all options to protect its sovereignty, interests and people."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Trump on the "bold" US strikes, calling the attack a historic moment that could lead the Middle East to peace.

"Congratulations President Trump. Your courageous decision to strike Iran's nuclear facilities with the extraordinary and just power of the United States will change history," Netanyahu said in a video address.

"President Trump and I often say: peace comes through strength. First comes strength, then peace," he added.

US Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, also welcomed the attack.

"This was the right decision. The regime deserves it. Well done, President Trump," Graham wrote on X.

But not everyone welcomed the attack.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "deeply alarmed" by the escalation.

"There is a growing risk that this conflict will quickly spiral out of control, with catastrophic consequences for civilians, the region and the world," Guterres said.

The decision to strike Iran could be politically risky for Trump, who won the presidential election last year on a promise to keep the United States out of foreign conflicts. Some members of his Make America Great Again coalition have advised Trump against directly involving the U.S. military in attacks on Iran.

Iran's nuclear watchdog said there was no risk to residents living around the affected areas, while Saudi Arabia's regulatory authority said no radioactive traces had been detected in the Kingdom or Gulf Arab states as a result of the attacks.

Since June 13, when Israel launched an air campaign claiming that Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon, the two countries have exchanged successive waves of heavy attacks. Iran continues to deny that its nuclear program is aimed at producing an atomic bomb.

Brett McGurk, a former member of the US National Security Council, stated that the use of the bunker-busting bomb, officially known as a "massive penetrator munition", is "the first time in military history", emphasizing that it is a weapon designed specifically for targets like Fordow.

He stressed to CNN that the mission was aimed at striking three nuclear facilities and not regime change.

"The message to the region and to Tehran is that this is only about nuclear facilities. It's not an extended mission. And it could end here," McGurk said.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said earlier on June 21 that Iran would not stop its nuclear program "under any circumstances," while Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi warned that US military involvement "would be very, very dangerous for everyone."

Araqchi, during a side conference of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Turkey, said that Iran was open to further dialogue, but stressed that it has no interest in negotiating with the US while Israel continues to attack.

In a phone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron, Pezeshkian said Iran is "ready to discuss and cooperate to build trust in the field of peaceful nuclear activities."

"However, we do not agree to reduce nuclear activities to zero under any circumstances," he added, according to the Iranian state news agency IRNA.

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