U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United States had already won its war against Iran but would not end the conflict until it had secured what he called a “total victory,” as Iranian officials warned that any renewed American strikes could trigger attacks on U.S. military installations far beyond the Middle East.

Speaking at a Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, Trump said Washington had not started the conflict, arguing that Iran had been waging war against the United States since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

“Under this administration, and it was about time, somebody fought back,” Trump said. “All of us fought back. We fought back. And we seriously fought back. And we won. Just a question of when we want to end it.”

He said the United States wanted to ensure a complete victory rather than settle for a partial outcome.

“We want to make sure we have a total victory, not a 93% victory. It's going to be total,” he said, adding that it would take Iran 25 years to rebuild what the United States had destroyed. He expressed hope that Washington would not have to destroy any more of the country.

Trump also sought to put the conflict into historical perspective, noting that the Korean, Vietnam and Iraq wars had lasted much longer and cost far more American lives.

The president reiterated his claim that the war would end soon, saying the United States had lost 18 people but that the world would be a safer and more peaceful place once the conflict was over.

His remarks came despite continued uncertainty over when hostilities might end. Trump has repeatedly predicted a swift conclusion to the war in recent months, while his administration has increasingly emphasized economic pressure as an alternative to further large-scale military operations.

In an interview with CBS's 60 Minutes broadcast Sunday, Trump said he currently saw no reason to escalate the conflict.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that Washington's economic campaign against Tehran was proving so effective that additional major combat operations were unnecessary.

Speaking after meeting G7 foreign ministers in Paris, Rubio said he had told allies that the economic campaign was having a devastating impact on Iran.

“We don't need to conduct military strikes if we're achieving the same objective through economic means and economic pressure. That's not stalemate,” he said, warning that the pressure would intensify.

Rubio also urged G7 partners to help protect commercial shipping around the Strait of Hormuz, where he said U.S. forces would remain deployed.

Iran Threatens U.S. Bases Beyond Middle East

Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei warned that Tehran would target U.S. military installations outside the Middle East, including those in Europe, if they were used to launch attacks against the Islamic Republic.

“If American aircraft take off from an American military base, even one located in a European country or some other distant region, to bomb Iran, we will strike those bases as well,” Rezaei told Lebanon-based Al Mayadeen television in an interview broadcast Wednesday.

He warned that any renewed U.S. attacks would prompt retaliation against American installations farther afield, including bases that Iran had not previously targeted.

“We may even strike certain islands that they assume are beyond the reach of our missiles,” he said in the interview, conducted in Tehran.

Rezaei also said there were currently no negotiations between Tehran and Washington, while warning that any new American military action would carry consequences.

His remarks came as U.S. officials have played down the prospect of further military operations against Iran, with analysts pointing to Trump's more conciliatory tone following the Republicans' defeat in the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

Tehran Rules Out Sending Enriched Uranium Abroad

Rezaei also ruled out transferring any of Iran's enriched nuclear material outside the country, saying Tehran would retain its stockpile regardless of diplomatic pressure.

Iran would not allow even a single particle of enriched uranium to leave its territory, he said, adding that the material was needed for the development of nuclear-powered ships and submarines.

“We need the enriched material to design ships and submarines that work on nuclear energy,” Rezaei said, adding that Tehran had informed Moscow that the material would remain in Iran and be used domestically.

Russia has previously offered to take custody of Iran's enriched uranium as part of a possible agreement to address U.S. concerns. Moscow has maintained, however, that the decision rests with Tehran.

The International Atomic Energy Agency estimated that Iran possessed 440.9 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% before Israel and the United States attacked Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025. That enrichment level is far above what is required for most civilian applications and is relatively close to weapons-grade material.

It remains unclear how much of the stockpile survived the strikes.

The United States, Israel and other Western countries have long accused Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, an allegation Tehran denies.

Washington has insisted that the nuclear issue must be included in any initial negotiations aimed at ending the war.

Iran, meanwhile, has sent Washington a nuclear proposal through Qatar, but a senior Iranian official told Reuters last week that Tehran would discuss it only after the United States meets seven demands presented by the Islamic Republic.

Pezeshkian Accuses Washington of Threatening Iran

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday accused Washington of threatening to use its most powerful non-nuclear weapon, the so-called "mother of all bombs," against his country while claiming to pursue a diplomatic solution.

In a post on X, Pezeshkian criticized what he described as Washington's attempt to pursue diplomacy through threats.

“There is no contradiction but a disgrace. Who threatens global peace and security?” he wrote.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf also signaled that Tehran was unwilling to restore the prewar status of the Strait of Hormuz.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Ghalibaf said the strategic waterway would not return to its previous status, adding that its future would be determined under a seven-point framework proposed by Iran.

He said Tehran's priority was peace, provided its conditions were accepted, and insisted that Iran did not want the war to continue.

Trump has repeatedly argued that military action was necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, despite Tehran's longstanding denials that it intends to develop one.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reiterated Washington's position Tuesday, saying that “crazy Islamists in Tehran will never ever have a nuclear weapon.”

Houthis Fire Missiles at Riyadh as Gulf Counts Cost of War

The conflict's economic and security repercussions are also weighing heavily on Gulf countries, many of which host U.S. military forces and came under daily Iranian attacks during the opening weeks of the war.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen's Houthi movement said Wednesday that its air defenses had intercepted and destroyed three cruise missiles launched toward Riyadh.

Coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said the missiles had been fired by what he described as the Houthi terrorist militia toward the Saudi capital.

The latest attack came days after the Iran-backed group damaged a skyscraper belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco in Riyadh's financial district on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the financial toll of the U.S.-Iran war on Gulf economies could exceed $200 billion in physical damage, with broader economic losses potentially reaching nearly four times that amount by 2030, according to a report released Wednesday by insurer Allianz Trade.

The report estimated direct physical damage across the region at slightly more than $200 billion, concentrated largely in countries whose economies are particularly exposed to disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, especially their energy infrastructure.

More than 80 energy facilities were hit during the war, mainly in Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, with roughly one-third suffering severe damage, the insurer said.

Beyond the destruction of energy infrastructure, the conflict has also disrupted tourism and real estate, sectors expected to experience slower growth for years.

“The total cost of the war for the GCC is set to reach $790bn, a cumulative gap of 5.9 percent of GDP relative to the pre-war trend through 2030,” Allianz Trade said.