US President Donald Trump says Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Gulf countries have asked him to hold off on further large-scale attacks against Iran.
Speaking in an interview with commentator Stephen A. Smith at the White House, Trump said he could end the war immediately but was keeping up economic and military pressure at the request of regional allies.
“Saudi Arabia has asked me to please just let it be the way it is now for a while,” Trump said. He added that Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain would “much prefer the waiting period”.
Trump admitted he was not fully convinced by the delay. “I’m not sure I agree with it,” he said.
Asked whether he would have ordered further attacks without those requests, Trump replied: “Yes, I would.”
He claimed the United States could destroy Iran’s energy infrastructure, bridges and manufacturing capacity in just three days. “In one day their energy is gone. In one day their bridges are gone. And in one day their manufacturing capability is gone,” he said.
Trump also acknowledged that rising petrol prices caused by the war had hurt Republicans in the midterm elections, though he defended his decision to attack Iran.
The comments came just hours after Trump said he would not hesitate to launch new military strikes against Iran if necessary. They also followed his statement on Thursday that the US does not need a deal with Iran, when he pulled Vice President JD Vance away from the talks.
The war began on 28 February with US and Israeli strikes on Iran. On Friday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had targeted a US early-warning radar in Bahrain, in retaliation for what they called an “enemy” air attack on a telecoms tower in the southern port city of Sirik.
