US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran will soon possess a missile capable of reaching the United States.
According to a report by The Times of Israel on February 27, 2026, this assertion lacks support from current US intelligence assessments and represents an exaggeration of the actual threat level.
According to three individuals familiar with the relevant reports, no credible evidence exists to substantiate the president’s statement during his State of the Union address to Congress.
Trump asserted that Tehran was actively developing missiles that would soon be able to strike the American homeland, using this point as part of his broader justification for potential military action against the Islamic Republic.
However, intelligence evaluations have remained consistent on this issue. Two sources confirmed that the unclassified 2025 assessment produced by the US Defense Intelligence Agency continues to indicate that Iran requires until 2035 to develop a militarily viable intercontinental ballistic missile.
This timeline applies even when starting from the country’s existing space-launch vehicles, which are designed primarily for satellite deployment rather than long-range weaponry.
The White House chose not to provide any comment on these discrepancies.
One informed source emphasized that meaningful progress toward an operational ICBM remains distant.
Even if Iran receives substantial technological assistance from close partners such as China or North Korea, the development process would still demand at least eight years before Tehran could produce a weapon system that qualifies as truly intercontinental in range and reliable in performance.
The sources, who requested anonymity due to the classified nature of the information, stated that they know of no intelligence analysis suggesting Iran is on the verge of acquiring such capability.
While they could not entirely exclude the emergence of a previously undisclosed report, they expressed skepticism about any sudden shift in the established consensus.See_More…