Hegseth says days ahead ‘will be decisive’ in Iran war

March 31 (UPI) — Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth called on other countries to help the United States on the Strait of Hormuz Tuesday as the Iran war enters its second month.

Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine held their first press briefing on the war since March 19, when he said the Pentagon will request $200 billion in additional funding from Congress. He told the press Tuesday that the United States is setting the “terms” of the war with increasing firepower and Iran’s defenses continue to deplete.

“The upcoming days will be decisive,” Hegseth said. “Iran knows that and there is almost nothing they can militarily do about it. Yes, they will still shoot some missiles but we will shoot them down.”

Hegseth claimed Iran has launched the lowest number of missiles and drones in a 24-hour period since the war started coming into Tuesday. He added that intelligence from U.S. Central Command says the strikes by the United States are leading to widespread desertions in the Iranian military.

On Monday evening, the United States executed 200 dynamic strikes on Iran, Hegseth said. He explained that dynamic strikes involve a pilot receiving new targets after takeoff.

Caine said the United States has struck 11,000 targets in the last 30 days, including 150 naval vessels. The focus of the United States remains on diminishing Iran’s munitions supplies.

“If Iran is wise, they’ll cut a deal,” Hegseth said. “This new regime, because regime change has occurred, should be wiser than the last. President Trump will make a deal. He is willing. The terms of the deal are known to them. If Iran is not willing, then the United States War Department will continue with even more intensity.”

“We would much prefer to get a deal,” Hegseth said later. “If Iran was willing to relinquish material they have and ambitions they have, open the strait, that’s the goal.”

The Strait of Hormuz was open to regular traffic prior to the United States launching strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. The closure of the strait has placed stress on the oil trade with the price of a barrel of crude oil surpassing $100 as the average price of gas reached $4.01 per gallon in the United States on Tuesday.

President Donald Trump continues to press other nations to step into the fray and aid in opening the Strait of Hormuz for oil transport. Hegseth said Tuesday that “there are many more vessels flowing through today than there were.”

“The president has been clear to Iran, open it for business or we have options,” Hegseth said. “I think the president was clear this morning in his ‘Truth’ that there are countries around the world who ought be prepared to step up on this critical waterway as well.”