US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (31) that the United States will leave Iran “very soon”.
“We will be leaving very soon,” he told reporters at the White House, adding that the exit could take place within two or three weeks.
The statement was Trump’s clearest yet about his intention to soon end a month-long war that has reorganized the Middle East, destabilized global energy markets and changed the trajectory of the Republican presidency.
Trump added that Tehran does not need to make a deal with Washington to end the conflict.
“Iran doesn’t need to make a deal, no,” he said when asked whether successful diplomacy was a prerequisite for the US to end the conflict.
“No, they don’t need to make a deal with me,” said the American president.
Instead, Trump said, the condition for ending the operation was that Iran “regress to the Stone Age” without the ability to acquire a nuclear weapon soon.
“Then we will leave,” he said.
What is happening in the Middle East?
The United States and Israel are at war with Iran. The conflict began on February 28, when a coordinated attack between the two countries in Tehran.
Several high-ranking officials of the Iranian regime were also killed. Furthermore, the US claims to have , as well as air defense systems, planes and other military targets.
In retaliation, the ayatollahs’ regime launched attacks on the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Iraq and Oman. Iranian officials say they are targeting only U.S. and Israeli interests in those nations.
More than 1,750 civilians have died in Iran since the start of the war, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. The White House, in turn, recorded at least 13 deaths of American soldiers in direct relation to the Iranian attacks.
The conflict also arises. Hezbollah, an armed group supported by Iran, in retaliation for the death of Ali Khamenei. As a result, Israel has carried out aerial offensives against what it says are Hezbollah targets in the neighboring country. Hundreds of people have died on Lebanese territory since then.
With the death of much of its leadership, an Iranian council elected a new supreme leader: . Experts point out that he represents .
Donald Trump showed dissatisfaction with this choice, the . He had said that he would need to be involved in the process and said that Mojtaba would be “unacceptable” to Iran’s leadership.
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