US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the war with Iran would end “immediately” after the US midterm elections, tying the end of the conflict to the November 3 vote.
Mr Trump, who was travelling to Dallas, Texas, to attend a Republican midterm convention, also said energy prices would begin falling after the election.
“I think the war is going to end immediately after the election,” he told reporters.
He suggested that Tehran was trying to prolong the conflict as a way of keeping fuel prices high in the run-up to the election.
"They'd like to have it that way," Mr Trump said. "But right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward.”
The comments mark a shift from his earlier statements about the expected duration of the conflict. When he launched the war alongside Israel on February 28, he said he expected it to last only a few weeks. The conflict has now continued for more than six months.
Iran's ability to put a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global supply of fuel once flowed, has emerged as the major sticking point in the conflict.
When asked why the war would end after the election, Mr Trump said Iran’s leaders were “desperate” to influence the results.
He also said the US was no longer seeking a negotiated end to the war, although he left open the possibility that talks could take place.
“Originally, I wanted to make a deal. We're so far down the line, they have very little country left right now, so we're not looking for it,” he said. “Yes, a negotiation could possibly happen but it's not something we're looking at.”
Oil prices have risen sharply during the conflict. Brent crude rose above $100 a barrel on Wednesday for the first time in six weeks, as fighting and disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz raised concerns over global supplies.
Higher energy and living costs are a key economic concern for Americans before the midterm elections, in which control of Congress is at stake.
Mr Trump campaigned on promises of lower costs and has repeatedly blamed inflation on his predecessor, Joe Biden.
His handling of the economy and the war in Iran have dented his approval ratings, which are about 33 per cent, polls show.
Mr Trump said petrol prices will eventually fall below $2 a gallon (52 cents a litre). The national average is currently above $4.
Asked about new UK sanctions on businesses and settlers linked to Israeli settlements, he did not condemn the measures, which were announced alongside similar action by France and Canada.
“Well, I've just seen it and I'll be speaking to Israel,” he said. “I'll be speaking to them and I'll find out what's their thinking. I understand, you know, I understand exactly what's going on, but I want to find out why all of a sudden has that happened.”
The US has so far declined to impose similar trade measures. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that Washington did not want to see anything “destabilising” in the West Bank.
