Trump says Iran war will end soon, calls progress 'swimmingly'
President Donald Trump, on Thursday, used an interesting expression to describe the Iran war and the U.S. economy at a roundtable discussion on his "No Tax on Tips" policy in Las Vegas, Nevada. Speaking at the event, the President used the word "swimmingly" to describe how the war in the Middle East was going, before claiming that it "should be ending pretty soon." Echoing the rosy predictions of his administration, Trump went on to claim that the economy was at its best while referring to the Iran war as a "little diversion" which will soon yield big results.
The President visited Vegas to promote his "No Tax on Tips" policy, which eliminated the federal income tax on tip-based wages for many workers. Joined by his Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, Trump spoke during a roundtable to share an update on the war. "I will say the war and Iran are going along swimmingly. We can do whatever we want. And it should be ending pretty soon," the President said. He went on to describe the military campaign as "perfect" before taking credit for the power of the U.S. Military.
"The power we have is our military. We have the most powerful military anywhere in the world. I built it for years, my first four years," Trump added during his remarks. He then claimed that the U.S. had the "best economy in the world" during his first term, and that the country was "blowing it away now," claiming his economic agenda was well on track. "Despite our little diversion to the lovely country of Iran...We had to do that because otherwise bad things could happen," he said, adding, "those people who question that you're going to see some incredible results".
Trump touted that the U.S. naval blockade of Iran was in full force and successful. "The ships are out there today and are saying, 'Don't come here. Don't even think about it.' And you have these massive tankers saying, let's get the hell out of here," the President stated.
Hours before the event, Trump announced that Israel and Lebanon had reached a 10-day ceasefire agreement, and a day earlier, he claimed a second round of face-to-face negotiations between Washington and Tehran could soon take place "probably, maybe, next weekend." The remarks come amid heightened tensions in the Middle East with ongoing concerns of a failed ceasefire agreement and its impact on global energy markets.
On Friday, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, said it could take about two years for the Middle East to recover the energy output lost during the war. In an interview with the Swiss Newspaper, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Birol said it would vary from country to country, as for instance, it would take longer for Iraq to recover than Saudi Arabia. "However, we estimate it will take approximately two years overall to reach pre-war levels again," Birol stated, as per Al Jazeera.
