A month after the start of the war with Iran, President Donald Trump addressed the nation on April 1 from the White House. He said the US would hit Iran “extremely hard over the next two to three weeks” and “bring them back to the Stone Ages, where they belong,” and that American “core strategic objectives are nearing completion.” He also discussed the war’s economic impact and, unexpectedly, did not mention NATO.
During the roughly 20-minute prepared speech, Trump made several claims that were misleading or false. DW examined a number of those statements.
Iran’s “original leaders” all dead?
Claim: “Regime change was not our goal. We never said regime change, but regime change has occurred because of all of their original leaders’ death. They’re all dead,” Trump said, according to a transcript.
DW Fact check: Misleading
While Trump initially said regime change was not a goal at the start of the war, he later asserted that regime change had occurred and urged the “people of Iran” to take action. The US did previously kill top Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani during Trump’s first administration. Since the start of the current US-Israel war with Iran, several key Iranian figures have been killed, most notably Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Khamenei has been replaced by his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, a development that suggests continuity rather than a wholesale change of regime. Other important officials who remain in place include President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei. Whether the removal of some top leaders amounts to “regime change” is debatable, but it is inaccurate to say all of Iran’s original leaders are dead and that the regime no longer exists.
Is the US “totally independent” of Middle Eastern oil?
Claim: “We’re now totally independent of the Middle East, and yet we are there to help. We don’t have to be there. We don’t need their oil,” Trump claimed.
DW Fact check: False
Trump focused on crude oil. The United States is the world’s largest crude oil producer, ahead of countries such as Russia and Saudi Arabia. However, the US still imports oil. The American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers reported that the US imports about 40% of its oil needs in total. In 2022, 12% of imported crude oil came from the Persian Gulf; the most recent figures (2025) show about 8.5% of crude oil imports originated in the Persian Gulf, roughly 250 million barrels.
So, while the US is a leading producer and has increased self-sufficiency, it is not completely independent of Middle Eastern oil. Greater — but not total — energy self-sufficiency does not insulate the US from global market pressures or disruptions related to conflicts such as the war with Iran. In 2026, gasoline prices in the US topped $4 a gallon, illustrating domestic exposure to global energy developments.
$18 trillion in investments during Trump’s second term?
Claim: Trump said the US has received more than $18 trillion in investments since he took office last year: “record setting investments coming into the United States, over $18 trillion and the highest stock market ever with 53 all-time record highs in just one year.”
DW Fact check: False
A White House page that tracks total US and foreign investments lists a total of $10.5 trillion — far less than Trump’s $18 trillion claim. The White House list attributes large pledges to the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, each shown as pledging over $1 trillion, figures that exceed the size of those countries’ economies and raise questions about how such commitments would be fulfilled. For context, the World Bank reported 2024 GDPs of roughly $550 billion for the UAE and $220 billion for Qatar.
Trump has made varying and inconsistent claims about investment figures in recent months, including a $10 trillion claim in May 2025 and the $18 trillion figure mentioned to Politico in December 2025. The $18 trillion number is not supported by the administration’s own publicly posted investment tracker.
This fact check was edited by Martin Kuebler; Marcel Tenud contributed.