Donald Trump Says He Is Winning the War in Iran With Ease

President Donald Trump posted messages on Monday (the 20th) defending that his Armed Forces are “incredible” and that he is “winning the war in Iran with ease,” while attacking the country’s press for what he called “fake news.”

“Tehran, Iran – United States President Donald Trump’s announcements about securing major concessions from Tehran have riled supporters of the Iranian establishment, prompting rejections and clarifications from the authorities”

Al Jazeera

In one post, Trump wrote that “if you read the fake news, you would really think we were losing the war,” and he added that “The anti-American fake-news media is rooting for Iran to win, but that won’t happen, because he is in command.”

Al Jazeera

Trump also stated that the U.S. blockade imposed on the Persian regime “will not be lifted until a formal agreement between the countries is reached,” and he wrote that Iran is “losing $500 million a day.”

In another post, Trump criticized the American press again and said he “does not see himself under pressure in the conflict,” insisting: “I read in the fake news that I am under pressure to make a deal. THAT IS NOT TRUE! I am under no pressure at all.”

The same source says Trump recalled “the roughly six-week deadline he had given at the start of the conflict for the end of the war,” and he wrote that “Time is not my adversary.”

Trump also defended that his attacks resulted in a regime change in Iran, praising what he described as an “operation” “on the scale of Venezuela,” and he referred to the “capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro in January this year.”

While Trump asserted that he is winning, multiple reports describe a parallel diplomatic track involving another round of negotiations in Islamabad, Pakistan, and continuing U.S. pressure through the blockade.

The Hill says “a new round of peace talks on Iran is tentatively set for this week in Islamabad, Pakistan,” and it frames the political debate around whether the U.S. has achieved “strategic victory” despite bombardments that “inflicted serious damage on the Islamic Republic, especially its navy and air force.”

CNN

The same report quotes Trump insisting on social media: “I’m winning a War, BY A LOT, things are going very well,” and it describes how Trump disparaged major news organizations including “The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post.”

The Folha de S.Paulo piece adds operational detail: “U.S. negotiators are on their way to Pakistan for another round of talks with Iranian authorities,” while Iran’s state media said Tehran “might not” attend.

The Folha de S.Paulo account also ties the talks to the ceasefire timeline, noting that “The two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran was announced on April 7,” and that it “was not specified at what time it ends.”

CNN’s reporting focuses on the travel schedule for Vice President JD Vance, saying Trump told The New York Post that Vance was already on his way, but CNN says Vance was expected to depart “on Tuesday” for talks beginning “Wednesday.”

CNN and Raw Story both describe a pattern of disputed or false claims by Trump about the Iran war, including basic details about Vice President JD Vance’s travel and assertions about the Strait of Hormuz.

“Donald Trump stated on Monday (the 20th) that he is winning the war in Iran with ease”

Folha de S.Paulo

CNN reports that Trump told The New York Post that Vance was already on his way to Pakistan, quoting Trump: “They’re heading over now,” and “They’ll be there tonight, [Islamabad] time,” but CNN says that “Except that wasn’t true.”

CNN adds that Trump’s inaccurate remark “might be shrugged off,” yet it is “part of a pattern that has accelerated over the past week – of this president being incorrect about even the most basic of matters related to the Iran war.”

Raw Story says CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale documented “a pattern of frequent false, dubious and unverifiable claims about the war,” and it highlights a specific example: Trump told the New York Post that “JD Vance was already on his way to Pakistan,” only for Vance’s motorcade to be spotted at the White House.

Raw Story also recounts Trump’s Friday claim that “Hormuz Strait situation is over” and that Iran agreed to “never close it again,” while Raw Story says Iran closed the strait the next day.

In the same Raw Story piece, Eric Brewer is quoted saying: “One of the big differences between the current round of US-Iran diplomacy and prior rounds is that this administration and the President in particular are unreliable narrators.”

Al Jazeera reports that Trump’s announcements about securing major concessions from Tehran “riled supporters of the Iranian establishment,” prompting “rejections and clarifications” from Iranian authorities with “days left on a two-week ceasefire reached on April 8.”

The article says Trump on Friday claimed Iran and the U.S. would “jointly dig up the enriched uranium buried under the rubble of bombed Iranian nuclear sites, and transfer it to the US,” and it says he also claimed Iran agreed to stop enriching uranium on its soil.

Raw Story

Al Jazeera adds that Trump said the Strait of Hormuz had been opened and would “never be closed again,” while the U.S. naval blockade of Iran’s ports remained in place, and it says sea mines were removed or were being removed.

The report describes how Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf rejected all of Trump’s claims, posting on X: “With these lies, they did not win the war, and they certainly will not get anywhere in negotiations either.”

By Saturday noon, Al Jazeera says the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) released a statement saying the Strait of Hormuz is “once again heavily restricted and under “strict management” of the armed forces.”

Al Jazeera also quotes Ezzatollah Zarghami writing on X: “Is there no Muslim out there to talk to the people a bit about what is happening?!”

The Hill frames Trump’s Iran war as causing political damage at home, even as Trump and key allies insist the U.S. military has already won.

“byNiall Stanage04/20/26 06:08 PM ET A new round of peace talks on Iran is tentatively set for this week in Islamabad, Pakistan — but there is growing evidence that President Trump has sustained political injury from the conflict that will not be easily undone”

The Hill

It says “there is growing evidence that President Trump has sustained political injury from the conflict that will not be easily undone,” and it quotes Democratic strategist Mark Longabaugh saying: “The Republicans have no message,” and “Their whole message is defending a war that nobody wants and nobody approves of.”

The Hill

The Hill reports that White House chief of staff Susie Wiles was “meeting with Republican strategists on Monday to help plot out a course in advance of the midterms,” while it also cites a poll from NBC News released Sunday showing Trump’s approval rating at “the lowest point of his second term.”

The Hill gives the poll numbers: “Just 37 percent of surveyed adults support his performance in office so far, while 63 percent disapprove,” and it adds that “67 percent of Americans disapprove of how Trump has handled the war in Iran, while just 33 percent approve.”

The Hill also describes messaging friction around energy prices, quoting Trump’s response to Energy secretary Chris Wright’s remarks to CNN’s “State of the Union” that average gas prices “might not” return to their prewar level “— just less than $3 per gallon — until next year.”

The Hill further quotes Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi warning of “very significant, serious economic fallout,” and it lists effects on “natural gas” and “substances critical for specific industries such as fertilizer for agriculture, helium for microchips and aluminum for consumer electronics.”