--- title: "Are we going to war with Iran? — A timeline of official statements" description: "Numerous officials within the Trump administration have put out conflicting statements about whether the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, the deployment of 3,500 additional paratroopers to the Middle East, and the overall rising tension between Washington and Tehran mean the U.S. is hurtling toward World War III or not." date: "2020-01-03" modified: "2020-01-03" authors: - name: "David Roza" job_title: "YouTube Writer/Editor" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/david-roza.md" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/trump-officials-conflicting-statements-iran/" categories: - "Analysis" - "Around the World" - "Iran" - "News" - "Tactics" - "Tech & Tactics" - "United States" - "Warfare" tags: - "central command" --- # Are we going to war with Iran? — A timeline of official statements ![]() Clausewitz wrote that "war is the realm of uncertainty," and the past 24 hours have proven him right: numerous officials within the Trump administration have put out somewhat conflicting statements about whether the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, the deployment of 3,500 additional paratroopers to the Middle East, and the overall rising tension between Washington and Tehran will result in the U.S. hurtling toward World War III. The following official statements, laid out in chronological order, show that the fog of maybe-war is as thick as ever: **7:42 a.m.:** Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declares the world "a much safer place" following the death of Soleimani, and that Americans in the region "are much safer today after the demise ." Meanwhile, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad urges American citizens to get out of Iraq [ASAP](), and suspends public operations until further notice. **1:02 p.m.:** Al Jazeera reports that Ismail Qaani, Soleimani's successor as chief of Iran's elite Quds Force, stated that "soon will [witness the bodies]() of Americans in all of the Middle East." **1:50 p.m.:** A Pentagon spokesman confirms reports that a brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division is being deployed to Kuwait. The deployment represents "an appropriate and precautionary action in response to increased threat levels against U.S. personnel and facilities," said Lt. Col. Thomas Campbell. **3:53 p.m.:** Despite the deployment and belligerent words from the Iranian military, President Donald Trump insists that the strike against Soleimani was meant "to stop a war. We did not take action to start a war." Pompeo also reportedly told Fox News on Friday that the strike against Soleimani was aimed at "settling the conditions for de-escalation" with Iran. **5:15 p.m.:** Robert O'Brien, President Trump's national security advisor, says in phone call with reporters that "terrorist leader Soleimani" had a "long history of attacking Americans," and urged Iran to "behave like a normal nation." He added: "The United States will not be intimidated by threats from our adversaries." ## Author David Roza is a former scriptwriter and reporter for the Task & Purpose YouTube channel, and he also wrote articles about military pay, benefits, health care, child care, culture, and other personnel topics on a freelance basis. Roza previously covered the Air Force and Space Force for Task & Purpose from 2019 to 2023 and for Air & Space Forces Magazine from 2023 to 2025. In the course of that reporting, he has set off a ‘Hollywood explosion’ with Air Force bomb techs, turned the (unarmed) keys of a nuclear missile bunker, hovered over the Nevada desert on an Air Force rescue helicopter, and got the best sleep of his life on the floor of a C-17 over the central Pacific. Share tips and story ideas with David at [david.roza@teamrecurrent.io]()