Donald Trump declared that he is "the number one enemy" of Iran: "They are garbage. That's how they behave and that's how they have behaved for 47 years. I do what is right for the country."

At the NATO summit press conference, Donald Trump stated that he considers himself the 'number one target' of the Iranian regime, which would like to assassinate him.

Trump mentioned that most Iranian leaders have been killed during the war, questioning whether he could also share the same fate.

“They had leaders, those have disappeared. They had another generation of leaders, those have disappeared. Now they have another generation of leaders, who might also disappear. And you know what, I might disappear too. I am at the top of the Iranian hit list,” said the U.S. president.

Although he described Iranian leaders as “garbage,” he acknowledged that the current leadership might be “somewhat more rational” than the previous one.

“Level one has disappeared, level two has disappeared. This is level three. I believe they are more rational,” Trump stated. Later, he nuanced his statement, saying that the remaining leaders might still not act rationally, considering, in his opinion, their behavior over the past one or two weeks.

Trump emphasized that Iran would have had plans to assassinate him and other officials of his administration, especially after he ordered the killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani during his first term.

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo benefited for years from Secret Service protection due to threats received after Soleimani's killing. After returning to the White House, Donald Trump ordered the withdrawal of protection for the two, amid the criticisms they directed at him.