[Anchor]
With the midterm elections about four months away, U.S. President Donald Trump is set to deliver an address to the nation shortly at 10:00 a.m. It is expected that he will once again claim election fraud, and there is also keen interest in whether he will address the war, as airstrikes against Iran have continued for six consecutive days.
Here is a report from our Washington correspondent, Jeon Byeong-nam.
[Reporter]
U.S. President Donald Trump will deliver an address to the nation today, July 17, at 10:00 a.m. KST.
While the specific details of the speech have not yet been disclosed, the White House described it as containing "shocking content" regarding election issues.
[Karoline Leavitt / White House Press Secretary: If we don't have safe and secure elections, we don't have a country. You will be shocked when you hear the President's speech tonight. Everything he says will be backed up by facts and evidence that will be provided.]
In this regard, The Washington Post reported, "Trump may raise the issue of vulnerabilities in the U.S. election system and once again allege that the 2020 presidential election results were manipulated."
Trump is also expected to emphasize the necessity of the "Save America Act," an election law reform bill being pushed by the Republican Party.
While the prevailing view is that the address will focus on messages aimed at the midterm elections, attention is also on whether he will mention the war with Iran.
Earlier, the U.S. Central Command announced that it had conducted additional airstrikes as of early this morning, KST, to further weaken Iran's military capabilities.
Amid analysis that the U.S. military is expanding its scope of airstrikes to the outskirts of Tehran and deeper into the Iranian interior, Trump posted a conciliatory message on social media, stating, "Iran has allowed the departure of U.S. citizens who were detained during the Biden era," and added, "I appreciate the good gesture."
On the other hand, Iran denied the claim.
Furthermore, Iran has heightened tensions by warning that if the U.S. attacks its power grid, it will close the gateway to the Red Sea through Houthi rebels.
(Reported by Park Eun-ha | Video by Jung Yong-hwa)
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