President Donald Trump said he expects the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran to end “immediately after” the midterm elections. Trump suggested that Iran is on the verge of collapse, but that its government is holding out in hopes of hurting Republican political prospects in November. But “they can’t hold out any longer,” he said.
Trump added that “it’s going to take a little bit longer than the midterm” for gas prices to come down, but that they would fall once Iran soon seeks an end to the war, which is now in its seventh month. Trump’s comments come as renewed fighting, including a barrage of tit-for-tat strikes in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, has driven up energy prices to their highest levels since late May. The global benchmark oil price topped $100 a barrel for the first time since July.
The national average for gasoline in the U.S. climbed 7.3 cents to $4.22 a gallon on Wednesday, the largest single day increase since May, according to AAA. Diesel reached a record $5.94 a gallon on Wednesday. The Trump Administration has sought to tamp down rising energy prices amid growing affordability concerns among Americans.
Last month, the Administration extended the Jones Act Waiver for another 90 days, allowing foreign-flagged vessels to transport oil and other commodities between U.S. ports. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the U.S. and Iran exchanged the largest wave of attacks on shipping since the war began. Iran said it attacked 10 ships, including two U.S. vessels, near the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S. destroyed five Iranian oil tankers.
Iran also launched missiles at a base hosting U.S. forces in Jordan, which U.S. officials reportedly said resulted in limited damage and no casualties. The U.S. said its tanker strikes were retaliation for two Iranian attempts to hit a U.S. The latest exchange came after days of escalating attacks.
U.S. forces struck Iranian military sites on Sept. 1 in retaliation for attempted Iranian attacks on commercial vessels and U.S. personnel, CENTCOM said. One U.S. strike hit a wedding party in southern Iran, killing at least five people and injuring more than 60 others, according to Iranian officials, and prompting an internal investigation by the U.S. military. On Saturday, Iran fired ballistic missiles at a U.S. aircraft carrier and destroyer.
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