Trump says the Iran war will end “very soon” but gives no timeline or details.
Iran’s IRGC urges US voters to reject Trump’s policies ahead of the midterm elections.
Brent crude rises as markets assess the impact of the Iran conflict on oil supplies.
US President Donald Trump has said the war with Iran will end “very soon”, but has given no timetable or details for how the conflict could end, while reiterating that Tehran will not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.
Trump’s comments came as indirect contacts between Washington and Tehran continued through mediators, while Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued an open letter urging American voters to reject his policies ahead of November’s midterm elections. The IRGC said the Trump administration “must be changed”.
Trump gives no details on end to war
Trump said on Monday that the United States would win the war with Iran “very soon” and that the conflict would end “pretty quickly”. He did not provide details of a settlement or set out a timeline for ending military operations.
On Tuesday, Trump said he did not know whether Iran would “give up yet”, while saying the country was doing “very poorly”.
“I don't know if they are going to give up yet but they'll give up,” Trump told reporters.
“They are doing very poorly,” he added.
Trump has repeatedly said Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon. Tehran denies seeking one and says its nuclear programme is peaceful.
Reuters reported that Qatar was mediating indirect talks between Washington and Tehran as the two sides sought a path towards negotiations.
Trump has also denied reports that he was prepared to offer Iran sanctions relief in return for concessions on its nuclear programme.
“This is untrue. I offered them NOTHING,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The diplomatic effort has yet to produce an agreement on reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Iran had proposed reopening the waterway within seven days and pausing the fighting, but Trump rejected the proposal. Iranian officials have said Tehran remains ready for talks, while refusing what they describe as coercion. The dispute over the strait remains central to negotiations because it is a major route for global oil and gas shipments.
Meanwhile, the United States has continued economic pressure on Tehran, including new sanctions targeting individuals and entities accused of helping Iran procure weapons and related components. The US has also offered to loan companies up to 40 million barrels of oil from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve to support global supplies.
IRGC appeals to US voters
The IRGC issued a 26-page open letter addressed to the American people, urging US voters to reject Trump’s policies and arguing that the US government under his leadership “must be changed”.
The letter was released about five weeks before the November 3 midterm elections. It tells Americans to “wake up” and “wrest control back from corrupt politicians”, while calling for a change in US foreign policy.
“Now is the time, as the American political system is at its weakest,” the IRGC said.
The letter accuses the Trump administration of misleading Americans about the war, Iran’s nuclear programme and the Strait of Hormuz.
IRGC spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi said the organisation did not expect the letter to immediately change the administration’s position, but believed American voters could respond differently if they had more information about the conflict.
“The American people are not knowledgeable about many developments. We believe if they knew more, they would think differently and take other decisions,” he said.
The Associated Press reported that Mohebbi urged Americans to reconsider their leadership and take to the streets to protest Trump’s policies. He also repeated the IRGC’s position that Iran is not seeking nuclear weapons.
“The enemy [US] knows that Iran is not after nuclear weapons,” Mohebbi said.
The appeal comes as Trump’s Republican Party faces the midterm elections and as the administration deals with the domestic consequences of the war.
Brent crude rises as war unsettles markets
Brent crude prices rose on Wednesday as markets assessed the conflict’s effect on oil supplies and prospects for diplomacy.
Brent crude futures climbed $1.14, or 1.11 per cent, to $103.73 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude gained 34 cents, or 0.38 per cent, to $89.72 a barrel.
Brent is on track for a monthly gain of about 14 per cent, while WTI is heading for a rise of about 4 per cent.
Al Jazeera reported that oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz had recovered to around 77 per cent of their pre-war level, although the waterway remained affected by the conflict. The strait is a key route for global energy shipments, making developments there important to oil markets.
Saudi Arabia has resumed tanker loadings from its Red Sea port of Yanbu after restarting the East-West Pipeline.
The latest rise in prices followed Trump’s denial that he was willing to ease sanctions on Iran. Qatar’s mediation efforts have continued, but there is no announced settlement between Washington and Tehran.
Trump’s claim that the war will end “very soon” has not been matched by publicly announced terms, while diplomatic contacts continue and the IRGC appeals to US voters ahead of the midterm elections.
