Vice President JD Vance criticized the press on Monday for trying to “drive a wedge” between himself and President Donald Trump regarding the ongoing military action in Iran with Operation Epic Fury.

Vance told a reporter in the Oval Office, “Look, I think that—I know what you’re trying to do, Phil, you’re trying to drive a wedge between members of the administration, between me and the president. What the President said consistently, going back to 2015, and I agreed with him, is that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon. We have taken this military action under the President’s leadership, I think all of us, whether you’re a Democrat or Republican, should pray for success and pray for the safety of our troops. That’s the approach that I’ve taken. Make it as successful as possible.”

Vance was asked if he had “no hesitation, given your past statements, with the current operation? The reporter later added, “Given your skepticism of foreign adventurism, you were a critic of the global war on terror previously.”

The Vice President replied, “well, I think one big difference, Phil, is that we have a smart president, whereas in the past, we’ve had dumb presidents, and I trust President Trump to get the job done, to do a good job for the American people, and to make sure that the mistakes the past aren’t repeated absolutely.”

During the press conference in the White House, Trump said the military operation in the Middle East would be “wrapped up soon.” He said, “we’re going to have a much safer world when it’s wrapped up. It’ll be wrapped up soon. We’re going to have a much safer world. I had an obligation to do this.” He said rising prices of oil and gas that have been seen in the wake of the operation being launched are “a very small thing compared to allowing them to have — you wanna see the stock market go down? Start letting them hit you with nukes.”