Associated Press

Trump Says Iran Had a New Site for Developing Nuclear Weapons

Iran state TV via AP
This image taken from video provided by Iran state TV shows Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of Iran’s slain supreme leader, who has been named as the Islamic Republic’s next ruler, authorities announced Monday, March 9, 2026.

The Associated Press

14:53 JST, March 10, 2026

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that the war with Iran began because that country was starting work on a new site for developing material for nuclear weapons. Trump also told reporters at a news conference that Iran was “going to take over the Middle East” if he hadn’t acted and that he was disappointed with the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Iran’s supreme leader. Ali Khamenei was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes. Trump also had a call Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the war and other issues. The Kremlin says the two leaders had a “frank and businesslike” conversation that lasted about an hour.