Trump Says U.S. Will Not Attack Iran Before Midterm Elections
The president said talks with Tehran are "productive" and the naval blockade will stay in place.
President Donald Trump said Thursday the United States will not attack Iran before the midterm elections on November 3, citing what he called productive discussions with Tehran.
“We are having productive discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “We will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the Midterm Elections to be held in the United States on November 3rd.”
He said the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports “will remain in full force and effect” and repeated his position that Iran will not be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.
Reports of new strikes dismissed
The statement pushed back on days of reports that the White House was weighing a return to strikes. Axios reported this week that the Pentagon had been instructed to prepare options for resuming major combat operations against Iran, possibly before the midterms. Trump’s post dismissed those reports.
The United States and Israel went to war with Iran on February 28. In recent weeks Iran has stepped up attacks on commercial tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil. Nine tankers were hit in the past week, the most of any week since the war began.
Oil prices jumped Thursday. Brent crude traded near $103.60 a barrel, up more than 3 percent, and U.S. gas prices averaged about $4.36 a gallon, according to AAA. On Wednesday the International Energy Agency agreed to release 100 million barrels from emergency reserves to calm the market.
The Treasury Department added new sanctions Thursday, targeting 17 vessels it said were part of a “shadow fleet” Iran uses to ship its oil around existing restrictions.
A midterm problem
The war has become a political problem for Trump with the midterms 26 days away. Republicans in key Senate races, including in Maine and Michigan, have distanced themselves from the decision to go to war with Iran. Voters have questioned whether the war breaks Trump’s promise to avoid new “forever wars.”
In his post, Trump said the pressure campaign is working and claimed oil was flowing through the Strait of Hormuz in record volumes, with none of it coming from or going to Iran. The midterm elections are November 3.
