President Trump has claimed that the US will end its involvement in the Iran War “very soon”, ahead of a televised address to the nation.
The White House confirmed Trump will give an “important update” on the war at 9pm EST on Wednesday evening, but did not give further details on what he was set to say.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday morning, though, the president hinted that de-escalation of the conflict was on his agenda.
"I think within two or three weeks, we’ll leave because there’s no reason for us to do this,” he said.
He also repeated his claim that the US had achieved “regime change” in the Islamic Republic, adding: “We’re dealing with people that are much more rational.”
And, asked how he would tackle the spike in energy prices and their impact on the cost of living for US consumers, he replied: “All I have to do is leave Iran. And I will be doing that very soon.”
Indeed, his comments – and the announcement of Wednesday’s address – saw oil prices drop by more than a dollar overnight, with futures on Brent Crude now trading under $100.
Likewise, financial markets reacted positively to the news, with Japan’s Nikkei closing on Wednesday nearly five per cent up on the previous day, breaking a four-day slide.
The president’s remarks were also echoed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said that Washington could “see the finish line” of the conflict.
"It’s not today, it’s not tomorrow, but it is coming,” he added.
It comes after the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had briefed White House aides that he is willing to pull the US out of the war with Iran without ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz is reopened.
The vital maritime route through the Persian Gulf, which carries around 20 per cent of global oil supply in peacetime, has been effectively blockaded for weeks by Tehran’s attacks against commercial shipping, with oil prices rising from $73 per barrel before the war to between $90 and nearly $120 since it began.
But, citing a member of Trump’s “inner circle” the Journal reported on Tuesday that he has concluded that “a mission to pry open the chokepoint would push the conflict beyond his timeline of four to six weeks”.
Instead, the report suggested that the president would withdraw the US from the war once “its main goals of hobbling Iran’s navy and its missile stocks” had been achieved, even if the strait remains closed.
Suzanne Maloney, Vice President of the Brookings Institution in Washington, told the paper that such a move would be “unbelievably irresponsible”.
"Energy markets are inherently global, and there is no possibility of insulating the US from the economic damage that is already occurring and will become exponentially worse if the closure of the strait continues,” she said.
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