Trump says Iran war moving 'very rapidly'
World
US President Donald Trump said Thursday the war against Iran was moving "very rapidly," even as Tehran's new leader vowed defiance in his first public message.
WASHINGTON (United States) (AFP) – US President Donald Trump said Thursday the war against Iran was moving "very rapidly," even as Tehran's new leader vowed defiance in his first public message.
"The situation with Iran is moving along very rapidly. It's doing very well, our military is unsurpassed," Trump said at the White House.
"They really are a nation of terror and hate, and they're paying a big price right now," added the US leader, who was attending a Women's History Month event with First Lady Melania Trump.
Trump has given mixed signals in recent days about the progress of the war, saying in recent days that "we won" against Iran and that it could end "very soon", but also insisting of the need to fight on.
He did not directly respond to comments by Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, in his first message since his elevation to the post, vowing revenge and saying that Iran must keep a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.
Global oil prices have soared with the virtual halt of tanker traffic through the strategic waterway.
But Trump said on social media earlier Thursday that stopping Iran's "evil empire" from getting nuclear weapons was more important.
TRUMP VOWS TO 'FINISH' JOB
Iranian missile strikes and drone attacks have brought shipping through the Strait of Hormuz almost to a halt, forcing governments to scramble to contain the fallout, but Trump said the United States must "finish the job".
"We don't want to leave early, do we?" Trump said while talking about the US-Israeli operation during a speech in Kentucky.
Trump said Washington would also tap US strategic reserves "a little" to help stabilise markets, while the International Energy Agency agreed to release a record 400 million barrels.
The president had earlier suggested the war itself might soon wind down. US forces have struck 28 Iranian mine-laying vessels, he said, adding that there was "practically nothing left to target".
"Any time I want it to end, it will end," he said in an interview with Axios.
Israel's military, however, signalled the campaign was far from finished, and that it still had "a broad bank of targets".
