 "US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami (AFP)")
US President Donald Trump has said that the Iran war “will be finished pretty quickly” as the conflict has rallied global oil prices in its second week.
“Within a week they were going to attack us 100%. They were ready. They had all these missiles far more than anyone thought, and they were going to attack us, but they were going to attack all of the Middle East and Israel,” Trump said in a speech in Miami.
“We know them all, and we’re knocking the hell out of that. Now, where they manufacture the drones. A lot of work, a lot of brilliant work. But we’re going to have a much safer world as soon as it’s finished, and it’s going to be finished pretty quickly,” the president continued.
Trump claimed that Iran would have used nuclear weapons on Israel if the US had not intervened, adding that 80 per cent of the country’s missile sites and launchers have been destroyed by now.
“And the missiles have been largely knocked out. the drones have been knocked down, and we’re hitting where they make the drones,” Trump said, noting the US military’s operation in Iran.
‘Haven’t won enough’
Despite saying that the war will over soon, Trump said that the US is yet to achieve more in Iran.
“We’ve already won in many ways, but we haven’t won enough. We go forward, more determined than ever to achieve ultimate victory that will end this long running danger once and for all,” the president said.
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View All“Together with our Israeli partners, we’re crushing the enemy and overwhelming display of technical skill and military force,” he added.
Oil risks
Oil traders, policymakers and central bankers are all watching the Middle East for news about Gulf energy infrastructure, which is crucial for the world economy.
About 10 vessels in or near the Strait of Hormuz have come under attack since Iran blocked the waterway in retaliation for the US-Israeli strikes, shipping experts say.
Global shipping giant MSC announced it was formally halting some export shipments from the Gulf, meaning goods sitting on ships would be unloaded.
With inputs from agencies