President Donald Trump declared the United States has seized control of the Strait of Hormuz during a Phoenix speech on April 17, 2026, a claim immediately denied by Iran's leadership. "We have now secured the Strait of Hormuz. It is ours," Trump said. Iran's parliament leader Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf claimed that all seven assertions Trump made about Iran during the speech were completely false.
Trump contended that the U.S. and Iran would jointly excavate Iranian nuclear sites to obtain what he called "nuclear dust," which Iran also denies. He announced plans to declassify government files related to unidentified aerial phenomena, saying, "We will release the files on UFOs."
The president claimed an extensive foreign policy record, arguing he had ended eight wars during his administration. According to Trump, adding Iran and Lebanon would bring the total to ten conflicts concluded. He asserted he prevented a catastrophic war between India and Pakistan that "would have killed 30 to 50 million people."
Trump announced a dramatic shift in U.S. refugee policy, suspending all refugee resettlement programs except for what he described as persecuted South Africans. "We suspended all refugee resettlement except for persecuted South Africans," he said, adding, "They kill white farmers" to justify the policy.
On environmental policy, Trump declared climate science to be fraudulent, claiming, "Global warming is a fraud" and calling it one of the greatest scams in history.
The president promised a radical overhaul of the American healthcare system, claiming he would introduce a new plan that cuts insurance companies out of the process and pays money directly to individuals.
Trump finished by suggesting the U.S. would next focus on Cuba, calling it "a new dawn for Cuba."
