Donald Trump Reiterates '8 Wars In 10 Months' Claim, Credits 'Tariffs'

US President Donald Trump doubled down on his claim that he helped settle at least eight wars across the world in the first 10 months of his second term in the White House. The Republican, who addressed the United States to present his administration's 2026 agenda amid falling popularity, also declared that "tariff" was his "most favourite word", a policy that upended the global trade relations.

"I've restored American strength, settled eight wars in 10 months, destroyed the Iran nuclear threat and ended the war in Gaza, bringing for the first time in 3000 years peace to the Middle East," he said.

Trump credited much of his administration's successes to his tariffs, despite indications that his disruptive trade policy has driven up some prices and proven largely unpopular with voters.

"Already, I have secured a record-breaking 18 trillion dollars of investment into the United States, which means jobs, wage increases, growth, factory openings and far greater national security. Much of this success has been accomplished by tariffs; my favourite word – tariffs, which for many decades have been used successfully by other countries against us," Trump said.

"But not anymore. Companies know that if they build in America, there are no tariffs. That's why they are coming home to the USA in record numbers. They are building factories and plants at levels we haven't seen," he added.

He lamented that "eleven months ago" he inherited "a mess" from the previous Biden administration and is "fixing it" now and ticked his list of Biden-era grievances, from "open" borders, crime and transgender men playing in women's sports to "the worst trade deals ever made" and a "sick and corrupt" federal government.

"For the last four years, the United States was ruled by politicians who fought only for insiders, illegal aliens, career criminals, corporate lobbyists, prisoners, terrorists and, above all, foreign nations which took advantage of us at levels never seen before," he said.

Trump claimed that upon his return to the White House, "In a few short months, we went from worst to best."

He also credited his administration for adopting a strong policy on dealing with illegal immigrants and said that “zero illegal aliens” were allowed to enter the US during his second term so far.

"Starting on day 1, I took immediate action to stop the invasion of our southern border. For the past seven months, zero illegal aliens have been allowed into our country – a feat which everyone said was absolutely impossible," he said. 

The US Commander-in-Chief announced an early Christmas gift for more than 1,450,000 military service members and said they will receive a special 'warrior dividend' "in honour of our nation's founding in 1776."

"We are sending every soldier $1,776," he said.

Trump's War Claims

While the Trump administration has played an active role in resolving some conflicts, at least temporarily, his "eight-figure" claim is often seen as an exaggeration. He has previously taken credit for settling the "war" between Egypt and Ethiopia, but that wasn't actually a war but a long-running diplomatic dispute over the Nile River. His list also includes a supposed success in ending conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, but that war has continued despite the US-brokered peace agreement.