Trump Floats Staying in Iran to 'Keep the Oil', Cites Venezuela Model
Trump suggests the US could remain in Iran and keep its oil, drawing a parallel with the Venezuela deal, while saying he still expects the war to end this year.
US President Donald Trump has suggested that Washington could remain engaged in Iran and "keep the oil", drawing a parallel with an American arrangement in Venezuela under which the United States has moved to take control of a fifth of the country's oil reserves.
Speaking on a trip to Ireland, where he was attending meetings and watching golf, Trump said the option of staying on in Iran was on the table alongside an eventual withdrawal. "We'll ultimately get out (of Iran), unless we decide to stay and keep the oil like Venezuela," he said, adding that revenue from Venezuela had "paid for the war many times".
The remarks came as he reiterated his expectation that the Iran war would conclude this year, possibly shortly after the US midterm elections in November. He also predicted that gasoline prices would "drop like a rock" once the conflict ended.
Oil markets have been unsettled by turmoil in the Middle East, and traders were expecting prices to climb again on Monday following an attack on a Saudi oil pipeline.
Trump said he would only agree to the "right deal" and would not accept one that was "no good". He also said Iran was "calling constantly" for peace talks, an assertion Tehran has dismissed in the past.