Trump Stuns the Internet with Remarks on US Power and 'Settling' Wars

Donald Trump sparked shock across the internet after claiming that "without the United States, everything in the world would die."

The President made these comments during a press conference in the Oval Office on Tuesday, September 2, where he announced that the US Space Command would be relocating from Colorado to Alabama.

Ahead of the conference, there had been much speculation about Trump’s health, with some far-fetched rumors circulating on social media even suggesting that the president had passed away.

One reporter asked: "How did you find out over the weekend that you were dead? Did you see that?"

Trump responded: "No. Really, I didn't see that... Last week, I did numerous news conferences, and they went really well, just like this one is going. I didn't do any for two days, and they said, 'There must be something wrong with him.' Biden wouldn’t do them for months, you wouldn’t see him, but nobody ever said there was anything wrong with him, even though we know he wasn’t in the best of shape."

Body language experts noted that Trump seemed uncomfortable while answering the question.

As is often the case with Trump press conferences, Tuesday’s gathering was full of bold statements, including his assertion that without the US, "the entire world would die."

Trump went on to say: "The United States is so powerful, it’s so big. I made it really big in the first four years."

He claimed that the country began to "degenerate" during the Biden administration, but now that he's back in office, Trump has managed to "build it up to a level I never thought we’d reach this quickly." He added: "We’re the hottest, we’re the best, we’re the best financially. The money coming in is huge because of tariffs."

Trump also claimed: "I’ve settled seven wars, and many of those wars were because of trade."

These comments have left much of the internet in disbelief, with one Reddit user describing them as "Completely nuts," while another commented: "Delusional."

In case people were unclear about which wars Trump is referring to, he mentioned last month on Mark Levin’s radio show: "I’ve settled six wars, and a lot of people say seven because there’s one nobody knows about."

The White House later provided a list of the seven conflicts, which includes Israel and Iran, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Armenia and Azerbaijan, Thailand and Cambodia, India and Pakistan, Egypt and Ethiopia, and Serbia and Kosovo. A Trump administration official stated: "There has been more progress toward peace than ever before because of this President’s leadership."

But does Trump deserve all the credit for these peace efforts?

Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at Brookings, said the president does deserve some recognition for the ceasefire in the Middle East. "He managed to use a combination of a strong relationship with Netanyahu and a willingness to apply pressure on him, which contributed to the temporary halt in hostilities," he told CBS News.

However, Larry Haas, a senior fellow, disagreed with the idea that Trump played a central role in bringing peace between Iran and Israel. "I strongly disagree with the notion that the president brought peace to Iran and Israel," he remarked. "We may be in a quiet period in terms of direct confrontation, but Iran is currently regrouping."

Many of the other wars Trump claims to have ended are met with skepticism. Josh Kurlantzick, a senior fellow for Southeast Asia and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations, noted that the conflict between India and Pakistan is far from resolved.

O'Hanlon also commented on the tensions between Egypt and Ethiopia, stating: "I wouldn’t describe the Egypt-Ethiopia situation as a war."