"Our warriors did not fight communism on battlefields across the world only to have that menace rear its ugly head right back here in America," Trump told a cheering crowd.
US President Donald Trump delivered a speech from the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on Saturday as Americans celebrated the 250th anniversary of the country's independence.
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Trump used his speech to tout American exceptionalism and drew heavily on history as he marked what the White House has dubbed the country's "most important milestone".
"The American dream is back," Trump, who has been at the centre of the celebrations, told a cheering crowd.
"No people have done more good, shown more courage, made more progress, righted more injustice, or achieved more greatness than you, the American people," he continued. "For 250 years, the United States of America has been the hope, the promise, the light, and the glory among all of the nations of the world".
Later in his speech, Trump also briefly touched on some of Washington's overseas military interventions, including Venezuela, where the US seized former President Nicolás Maduro in January, and the Iran war, with Trump saying the US had "wiped out" Tehran's military.
He also renewed his criticism of "communists" - a term he often uses to describe his domestic opponents.
"Our warriors did not fight communism on battlefields across the world only to have that menace rear its ugly head right back here in America," he said.
"It's like a cancer. You got to cut it out," he added.
A huge fireworks display kicked off over the capital's lightning-filled skies following the president's speech, which was delayed due to a passing storm.
The celebrations came amid a brutal heatwave that's been gripping large parts of the eastern United States this week.
On Saturday, the US's National Weather Service said the "prolonged, dangerous" hot spell would continue through the holiday weekend across the Ohio Valley, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic, with multiple temperature records expected.
World leaders, politicians, and royals sent messages of congratulations to the US ahead of Saturday's 250th birthday celebrations, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and King Charles III.
Charles issued a particularly heartfelt statement to Trump to mark the occasion, calling the UK's relationship with the US "one of extraordinary evolution" and "one of the closest and most productive alliances the world has seen".
"Across defence and security, trade and investment, science, research, education, culture and the arts, the ties between the United Kingdom and the United States are unique and far-reaching," he added.