Trump says the US has not withdrawn “yet,” but its allies must “come in and take care” of the Strait of Hormuz.
President Trump told CBS News on Tuesday morning that he’s not “one bit” ready to remove American assets as part of the deal efforts to force Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuzdespite Social Truth posts suggesting that partners should do it themselves.
On the phone, Mr. Trump reiterated his frustration that other countries, including the UK, did not send military equipment to join the US-Israeli war with Iran. But he said he has not ruled out US troops in the effort yet.
“At some point I will, not right now. But countries have to step in and take care of it. Iran is destroyed, but they will have to step in and do their job,” said Mr.
The president reiterated his claim that, despite ongoing Iranian strikes on the ships and infrastructure of the Persian Gulf nations, “there is no real threat” in the Strait of Hormuz, transit key with 20% of oil of the world.
“I will be there, but if they are having difficulty getting oil, let them take it the way they have to. Let them go up and take it. They didn’t want to give anyone a hand. NATO is dangerous, and everything is bad. So if they want oil, come and get them. There is no real threat, there are no national threats. [Iran] it is destroyed, let them go up and take it. It’s time for them to do something for themselves.”
Gas prices they have continued to increase as the war continues. The official national measurement of the gallon exceeded $4 Tuesday for the first time in more than 3 years, according to AAA. Asked about this milestone, Mr. Trump said prices would drop “once we get going” after the war is over.
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt also told CBS News in a statement, “Once Operation Epic Fury is complete, gasoline prices will drop back to the lowest level American drivers enjoyed before this short-term disruption.”
When asked when the American military might end, Mr. Trump didn’t give a point but said, “It won’t take long,” adding, “I would say it’s two weeks ahead of schedule.”
When the war started, Mr. Trump said it would take “4 to 6 weeks,” but this is already week 5.
He said Iran “no longer has military power. It’s down to everything it had. They’re a mess.”
“We did our job,” he continued. “It’s going to take them 10 years to rebuild. We’ve had a complete regime change. These are different people than anyone you’ve heard of before, and frankly they’ve made sense. So, we’ve had a more complete regime change than anyone thought. It’s a big factor.”
One of the president’s first goals was to ensure that Iran would never have a nuclear weapon. But on the phone, Mr. Trump declined to specify whether he would be able to declare victory without removing Iran a mass of enriched uranium – something military experts say could be it is incredibly challenging and dangerous to try.
“I don’t even think about it. I just know that, you know, that buried so deep is going to be very difficult for anybody,” he said. Referring to the US-Israeli bombing last June of Iran’s nuclear facilities, he said, “Finally people agree that it was a waste. It’s down there deep. And they couldn’t do it. You know, even without a war they couldn’t do it. So … it’s very safe. But, you know, we’re going to make a determination.”
