The war in Iran is now in its fifth week. Americans are still unsure what the goal of the Donald Trump administration is, according to the latest polls. Oil prices in the US are rising. On Tuesday evening, the US president said that the solution to this problem lies in the end of the war in Iran, which will be "very soon". According to Trump, it is a period of "two or three weeks" before the US ends the war.
The statement is unexpected - a few days ago, the "Wall Street Journal" reported that another US aircraft carrier was heading to the Middle East, where two such warships are already stationed.
Trump insists that "regime change" has been accomplished
In addition to his intention to end the war within a few weeks, Trump also insisted again that "regime change" has been accomplished in Iran. "We had to take a little detour because there was a crazy guy who, unfortunately, is no longer with us", the US president said, confusing the slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with his predecessor, Khomeini. "So we already had "regime change". We took down the first regime, and then the second. Now we have a group of people who are very different. They are much more reasonable", Trump said.
Trump's former national security adviser, John Bolton, says the US president is deliberately claiming that the Iranian regime has been overthrown. "Trump is looking for a way to get out of the war, and this is a way to declare that he has won, even though that is not the facts", Bolton commented to the American public radio NPR. "The regime has not fallen, and it will not fall until the ayatollahs and the Revolutionary Guard are removed".
The Strait of Hormuz "has nothing to do" with the United States?
Regarding his plans for the war in the coming weeks, Trump again did not give any specifics. "We want to destroy everything they have. But it is possible to make a deal before that", the American president said. "If that happens, that would be good. But it doesn't matter whether they agree or not.
It also seems to be irrelevant to the US president whether the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened after Washington ends its attacks on Iran. "This has nothing to do with us", he said of the strait. It is possible that Trump then intends to end the war unilaterally. The US troops will probably simply cease fire and withdraw - regardless of the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, writes ARD. The White House announced that Trump will give a speech on Wednesday evening local time, in which he will touch on the situation in the Middle East.
Author: Carsten Küntop (ARD)