Trump raises the stakes of confrontation: "Iran will pay a greater price with every American soldier who falls"

U.S. President Donald Trump said in remarks to Axios that the United States would respond firmly to any attack targeting its troops, stressing that "every time Iran kills an American soldier, it will pay many times over."

Trump said he had issued these instructions to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Daniel Caine, as well as various U.S. military commanders, emphasizing the need to respond forcefully to any attack on American forces.

In a related context, Trump also said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "will not be stopped in any way while he is in the United States," arguing that he is "confronting Iran, which, according to him, killed tens of thousands of protesters."

Trump added that responsibility, in his view, lies with "Iran's leaders, who have led the country into a cycle of death and destruction," calling for them to be held accountable instead of targeting Washington's allies.