Photo courtesy of Anadolu
US President Donald Trump has tied the pace of American military operations against Iran to the approaching midterm elections, saying political timing was one reason Washington had stopped short of a full-scale escalation.
During a Fox News interview Thursday, Trump was pressed on why the United States had not intensified its attacks despite calls for a more aggressive campaign, pointing to the Nov. 3 elections as a factor in his decision-making.
Trump predicted that hostilities could conclude before Americans vote or soon afterward, while portraying Iran as increasingly weakened by the fighting.
Despite claiming that much of Tehran’s military capability had been destroyed, Trump acknowledged that Iranian forces still possessed missiles and retained the ability to launch attacks.
The president defended the decisions he had made throughout the conflict and said he would follow the same course if given another opportunity.
Trump also repeated his claim that US strikes had eliminated Iran’s nuclear capability, arguing that Tehran acquiring a nuclear weapon would have dramatically changed the strategic balance in the Middle East.
Speaking separately while returning from a Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Trump rejected a Wall Street Journal report suggesting the conflict could stretch through the remainder of his presidency.
He also sought to ease concerns over energy costs, predicting that oil prices would retreat once the fighting stops and again forecasting an end to the war around the November elections.