Trump says Iran war will end ‘very soon’

LIFTING OIL SANCTIONS

Trump also said he will waive some sanctions on oil to ensure an adequate supply and lower prices.

“We’re also waiving certain oil-related sanctions to reduce prices,” Trump told reporters after talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We’re going to take those sanctions off till this straightens out.”

Trump did not give specifics, but the United States last week issued a temporary, 30-day waiver to allow for the sale of Russian oil currently stranded at sea to India to alleviate pressure on the global oil market.

He added that he had a “positive phone call with Putin on the Ukraine and Iran wars.

“He wants to be helpful” on the Middle East, Trump said of Putin, who backs Iran and invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Earlier, Trump’s comments to broadcaster CBS that the United States was far ahead of his initial timeline of around a month had sparked optimism on the stock and oil markets.

“I think the war is very complete, pretty much. They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no air force,” Trump told CBS News by phone.

“Their missiles are down to a scatter. Their drones are being blown up all over the place, including their manufacturing of drones,” he added. “If you look, they have nothing left. There’s nothing left in a military sense.”

Trump told the US broadcaster that the United States was “very far” ahead of his initially stated time frame of four or five weeks.

The US leader has given similar assessments in recent days of battle damage from the US-Israeli strikes that began on Feb 28, but had not gone as far in saying that the war was nearing an end.

Just last Friday, Trump issued a statement that Iran’s “unconditional surrender” was the only acceptable outcome for ending the war.

And his comments came about an hour after the Pentagon posted on social media that the United States had “only just begun to fight.”