US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the US could end the war with Iran within weeks, pointing to a possible early exit from a conflict that has disrupted global energy markets.Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said, “We’ll be leaving very soon,” adding that the withdrawal could happen “within two weeks, maybe two weeks, maybe three.”The remarks are his clearest yet that Washington is preparing to wind down the month-long war.Trump also said a deal with Tehran is not necessary to bring the conflict to an end. “Iran doesn’t have to make a deal, no,” he said. “No, they don’t have to make a deal with me.”Instead, he said the objective is to ensure Iran is left without the ability to quickly develop a nuclear weapon.“Then we’ll leave,” he added.On the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil route, Trump said the US will not take responsibility for securing it.“That’s not for us. That’ll be for France. That’ll be for whoever’s using the strait,” he said, adding there is “no reason for us to do this.”He also criticised US allies for not doing enough to support the American effort.Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the joint US-Israel offensive is weakening Iran and reshaping regional alignments.Addressing the nation, Netanyahu said the campaign was “systematically crushing” the Iranian regime and that Israel is building “new alliances with important countries in the region.”He said Iran had spent vast sums on its military ambitions with little to show for it.“Now it can be said: That trillion has gone down the drain,” Netanyahu said.Netanyahu added that Iran is now weaker than before, while Israel has emerged stronger, though he stressed that the war is not yet over.The developments come amid growing expectations that the US could halt the war without a formal agreement, a possibility that some analysts say Israeli messaging is beginning to anticipate.
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