Donald Trump has said “Iran militarily is effectively over”, and said that there is “positive momentum” behind negotiations to end the Middle East conflict.
“We’re just keeping it the status quo,” the US president said on Monday. “And we’re doing that really at the behest of countries that are their neighbours.”
Trump’s comments came after he met the Qatari prime minister. Qatar is a US ally in the Gulf region, and one of Iran’s neighbours, which has been a key mediator in efforts to end the war.
Addressing reporters in the White House press briefing room, Trump said that renewed US attacks on Iran were “highly unlikely” but that the US was “locked and loaded” should the circumstances change.
Iranian officials have repeatedly expressed doubts about Trump’s prior comments about resolving the conflict.
This is not the first time that Trump has said the Iran war is “militarily” over, but the circumstances for him are different now.
The president has hinted at de-escalation in Iran after a bruising set of midterm election results for the Republicans last week, which senior figures including Vice-President JD Vance blamed on the Iran war.
Ahead of the midterms, Trump had said US forces conducted what he described as “minor strikes” on an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz. However, in an interview with 60 Minutes that aired on Sunday, the president said that he did not currently see “any reason” to escalate the conflict.
Responding to a question over why he would not officially declare an end to the war, Trump said that some of the Gulf allies could still face Iranian aggression.
“We have some great allies there and we have to make sure they’re not hurt,” he said, suggesting that the US naval blockade on Iranian ports was helping to make the region more secure.
Global oil prices, which have fallen sharply since the midterms, dipped further after Trump’s comments.
On Tuesday afternoon in Asia, Brent crude was more than 1% lower at $91.50 (£52) while US-traded was down by 1.2% at $85.82.