Iran war won't end until after US midterm elections, says Trump
The president also tells reporters he does not think oil prices will come down until after the crucial November vote.
Iran war won't end until after US midterm elections, says Trump
US President Donald Trump said he does not believe the Iran war will be over until after November's midterm elections, and added that oil prices will not fall before then.
"I think the war's going to end immediately after the election because they can't hold out any longer," Trump said of Tehran on Wednesday.
His remarks came as he traveled to Texas for the party's first convention before the midterms, when control of the US government could shift.
Trump is under pressure from declining poll numbers and from within his Republican Party to bring the war with Iran to an end.
On Wednesday, oil prices climbed to $100 (£74) for the first time since July because of escalating fighting in the Middle East.
"Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward," Trump told reporters. "I think it's going to take a little bit longer than the midterm."
He said Iran was "desperate to try and affect the election, so that we can get a nice weak group of people in there" - an apparent reference to the Democrats - "and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon".
Tehran has repeatedly denied that it is trying to develop nuclear weapons.
Trump also said more talks with Iran might happen, "but it's not something we're looking at".
The US president had originally forecast that the war, now in its seventh month, would last only a few weeks. The conflict, and its ripple effects on everything from gas to groceries, has caused a sharp drop in his approval ratings.
Fighting in the Middle East has intensified in recent days, with oil facilities across the region coming under attack, pushing up the global cost of fuel and anything that has to be shipped.
On Wednesday, the US military said it had struck five oil tanker ships linked to Iran. In response, Tehran launched attacks on two US Navy destroyers and eight oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, inflicting "heavy damage" on the vessels, according to Iranian state media.
A day earlier, the Iran-linked Houthis in Yemen carried out a series of attacks in Saudi Arabia, setting fires at oil facilities.
The fighting, which resumed recently after a 60-day ceasefire between the US and Iran formally ended last month, has also fueled forecasts that higher fuel prices could result in higher interest rates in the US.