Trump Says Iran War Will End ‘Immediately’ After Midterms

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S President Donald Trump has said the war with Iran will end “immediately after” November’s midterm elections, offering a new timeline for ending a conflict that has continued for months and contributed to a sharp rise in energy prices across the United States.

Trump made the remarks on Wednesday while speaking to reporters on the tarmac as he travelled to Texas for the Republican midterm convention. He also accused Iran’s leadership of deliberately escalating the conflict in an attempt to influence the US elections and damage Republican candidates.

“I think the war is going to end immediately after the election,” Trump said, arguing that Iranian leaders were increasingly desperate and seeking to affect the political outcome in November.

The president’s latest prediction represents another shift in his timeline for the conflict. The war has lasted significantly longer than Trump initially suggested, while Republican lawmakers and candidates have increasingly faced questions about the economic consequences of the fighting.

Trump claimed that Iran was attempting to influence American voters by prolonging the conflict and said Tehran wanted to see Republicans weakened after the election.

“They’re desperate to try and affect the election,” Trump said, arguing that Iran wanted Americans to elect what he described as a weaker group of lawmakers that would allow Tehran to continue pursuing its nuclear ambitions.

The comments come as the war has become an increasingly important political and economic issue in the United States. Rising fuel prices have added pressure on American households and intensified concerns among Republicans that the conflict could damage the party’s prospects in the midterms.

Rising energy prices put pressure on Republicans

The economic consequences of the war have become particularly visible through higher energy costs. Diesel fuel has risen to almost $6 per gallon on average, reaching a record high the previous week, while regular gasoline is averaging about $4.22 per gallon, up from $4.01 a month earlier.

Higher fuel prices have also affected the cost of everyday goods, including groceries, adding to broader inflation concerns and increasing frustration among voters.

Republicans have been concerned that the economic impact of the conflict could threaten their majorities in Congress. The party is seeking to maintain control of the House of Representatives and potentially the Senate in the November elections, making the trajectory of energy prices a significant political issue.

Trump sought to reassure voters by predicting that gasoline prices would fall sharply after the elections. He claimed that prices could drop below $2 per gallon once the midterms were over.

However, the continuing conflict has created uncertainty over how quickly energy markets could stabilize. The United States and Iran have intensified attacks in recent days, with the two sides trading strikes involving naval vessels and oil tankers.

The escalation has increased pressure on global energy markets and contributed to concerns about the wider economic consequences of continued hostilities.

Trump’s comments came against this backdrop, linking the conclusion of the war directly to the political calendar. His prediction that the conflict will end immediately after the midterms could place additional pressure on his administration and Republican candidates if fighting continues into or beyond November.

Trump rules out immediate negotiations with Iran

Alongside his prediction that the war would end after the elections, Trump said he was no longer actively seeking negotiations with Iran’s leadership.

The president said he had initially wanted to reach an agreement to end the fighting, but argued that the situation had changed significantly.

“Originally, I wanted to make a deal,” Trump said. He added that there was now very little of Iran left, in his assessment, and that his administration was therefore not actively pursuing negotiations.

Trump nevertheless acknowledged that negotiations could still take place under certain circumstances, saying that a diplomatic agreement remained possible even though it was not currently an objective of the administration.

The shift in Trump’s position comes as military confrontations between Washington and Tehran continue to intensify. The recent exchanges involving naval ships and oil tankers have raised the stakes of the conflict and increased concerns over further disruption to energy supplies.

Trump’s comments also reflect the increasingly political dimension of the war inside the United States. With the midterm elections approaching, both the conflict itself and its economic effects are likely to remain major issues for voters.

Republican candidates face the challenge of defending the administration’s handling of the war while responding to the impact of higher fuel and food prices. Democrats, meanwhile, could use the economic pressures associated with the conflict to argue that the administration’s policies are hurting American households.

Trump has framed the conflict as a struggle against Iran’s nuclear ambitions and accused Tehran of attempting to interfere in US politics. But his latest promise that the war will end immediately after the midterms leaves the timing of any potential ceasefire or settlement uncertain.

For now, the United States and Iran remain engaged in an escalating confrontation, while energy prices continue to weigh on American consumers. Trump’s latest deadline therefore places the November election at the center of both the political debate and his administration’s stated expectations for the war’s conclusion.

(Source: Politico)