Easy way or the other way: JD Vance defends Trump's no-nukes stance on Iran

UPDATED: Jun 18, 2025 00:48 IST

US Vice President JD Vance defended Trump's position that Iran must not have a nuclear weapon. In a detailed post, Vance emphasized that Trump has been consistent for over a decade in opposing Iranian uranium enrichment, arguing that Tehran has violated non-proliferation obligations.

In a posting, Vance acknowledged his personal closeness to the president, but said he felt compelled to correct “a lot of crazy stuff” circulating online about US intentions in the Middle East.

“First, POTUS has been amazingly consistent, over 10 years, that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Vance wrote. “He said repeatedly that this would happen one of two ways — the easy way or the ‘other’ way.”

According to Vance, Trump had pushed his foreign policy team to reach a diplomatic solution with Iran but remained firm that any deal must include a complete halt to uranium enrichment.

“I have yet to see a single good argument for why Iran needed to enrich uranium well above the threshold for civilian use,” he said, referencing repeated violations flagged by the Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). “Iran rejected civilian nuclear power without enrichment — why?”

Vance emphasized the distinction between civilian nuclear power and uranium enrichment, accusing Iran of hiding behind peaceful energy claims while pursuing enrichment levels “right to the point of weapons-grade uranium.”

He also addressed fears of another prolonged military conflict in the Middle East, saying the president “has earned some trust on this issue” and is focused solely on advancing American interests.

“Whatever he does, that is his focus,” Vance said. “He is only interested in using the American military to accomplish the American people’s goals.”