Trump says US to leave Iran 'pretty quickly' and return if needed

WASHINGTON: Iran's new ​leader has just ‌asked the United States ​for ​a ceasefire, United States President ⁠Donald ​Trump said in ​a Truth Social post on ​Wednesday.

"We will ​consider when Hormuz ‌Strait ⁠is open, free and clear. Until ​then, ​we ⁠are blasting Iran ​into oblivion," ​he ⁠said.

He separately told Reuters today, hours before ​he was scheduled to make a ​primetime address to the nation, that the US would ​be "out of Iran pretty quickly" and ‌could return for "spot hits" if needed. 

Trump also said ⁠he would express his disgust with NATO ​for what he considered the alliance's lack ​of support for US objectives in Iran. He said he was "absolutely" considering an attempt to withdraw ​the US from NATO.

UAE preparing to support US efforts to open Hormuz by force: report

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates is preparing to support US-led efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by force, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Citing Arab officials, the outlet reported that the UAE is lobbying for a UN Security Council resolution that would authorise military action and is urging the US and military powers in Europe and Asia to form a coalition to secure the strategic waterway.

The Gulf state is also reviewing potential military roles, including mine-clearing operations, as it weighs becoming a direct participant in the conflict for the first time, the report said.

In a statement cited by the Wall Street Journal, the UAE Foreign Ministry said there is “broad global consensus that freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz must be preserved,” pointing to international condemnation of disruptions in the waterway.

US-Israeli strikes hit steel complexes in central, southwest Iran

According to Al Jazeera, US-Israeli strikes have hit steel complexes in central and southwest Iran, damaging production units, Iranian media is reporting.

“Initial assessments indicate massive attacks, with significant damage and destruction to production units” at the complex of the Mobarakeh Steel Company, one of Iran’s biggest, in the central province of Isfahan, Fars news agency reported, quoting a statement by the company.

According to Al Jazeera, Fars said one of the company’s subsidiaries, Sefid Dasht Steel, in the southwestern Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, had also “sustained damage and losses”.

The complex in Isfahan was attacked on Friday along with Khuzestan Steel factories in southwestern Iran.

Steel is an essential material for industrial and military production, including of missiles, drones and ships.

Trump "seriously considering" pulling US out of NATO

Speaking with the UK’s The Telegraph on Tuesday, President Trump has threatened to leave NATO.

“Oh yes, I would say [it’s] beyond reconsideration,” he said. “I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and Putin knows that too, by the way.”

According to Al Jazeera, Trump has recently called NATO “cowards” for refusing to send troops to the Strait of Hormuz.

He repeated those complaints to The Telegraph, claiming support “should be automatic” and appearing to draw a comparison between the war on Iran and Russia’s war on Ukraine.

“We’ve been there automatically, including Ukraine. Ukraine wasn’t our problem,” he said. “It was a test, and we were there for them, and we would always have been there for them. They weren’t there for us.”

Rubio says US can see 'finish line' on Iran war

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that Washington could see the "finish line" in the US-Israeli war on Iran, which is now in its fifth week, and the US will have to reexamine ties with NATO after the conflict.

"We can see the ​finish line. It's not today, it's not tomorrow, but it is coming," Rubio told Fox ​News "Hannity" show.

In a recent statement, Donald Trump has been "seriously reconsidering" pulling out of NATO, according to Al Jazeera.

The war began on February 28 when the US and Israel attacked ⁠Iran. Tehran responded by launching its own attacks on Israel and Gulf states with US bases.

Joint ​US-Israeli strikes in Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions. The war has ​also raised oil prices and shaken global markets.

Rubio said messages were being exchanged between Iran and the US, and there is the potential to have a "direct meeting at some point" between the two sides.

"Messages are being ​exchanged, talks are going on. There is the potential for a direct meeting at some point," Rubio ​said.

President Donald Trump -- who has offered shifting timelines and objectives for the war, ranging from toppling Iran's government to weakening its ‌military ⁠and regional influence -- said on Tuesday the US could end its military attacks on Iran within two to three weeks.

Rubio said, "there's nothing any government is doing, or any country in the world is doing now to help Iran that is in any way impeding our mission."

He added Washington will have ​to reexamine its relations ​with NATO after the ⁠Iran war.

"Ultimately, that's a decision for the president to make, and he'll have to make it," Rubio said.

"But I do think, unfortunately, we are going ​to have to reexamine whether or not this alliance that has served ​this country well ⁠for a while is still serving that purpose, or has it now become a one-way street where America is simply in a position to defend Europe, but when we need the help of our allies, ⁠they're going ​to deny us basing rights, and they're going to deny ​us overflight," he added in reference to use of military bases.

European leaders have refused to get directly involved in military attacks ​against Iran.

Iran focused on defending its territory

According to the Tasnim News Agency, Spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry Esmaeil Baqaei said that Tehran has received messages from mediators regarding the ongoing US-Israeli military aggression, but its stance remains "clear and defensive".

In an interview with South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, Baqaei said Iran had been attacked twice in the past nine months during ongoing diplomatic processes with the United States, describing the February 28 assault as a direct breach of diplomacy, despite Oman's mediation.

He said that US claims of imminent Iranian threats or nuclear concerns are unfounded, as Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful, and said the war imposed on Iran is based on US ambitions rather than legitimate security concerns.

Baqaei reiterated that Iran did not initiate the conflict, which he described as an illegal and aggressive war by the United States, and emphasised that Washington must stop the hostilities while Iran continues to defend itself.

Additionally, around 1,262 Iranians living in Dubai have returned to Iran since the war started, Al Jazeera reports, citing Tasnim News Agency.

Since direct flights to Iran are closed, people have flown in via Afghanistan and Armenia. The Iranian government has submitted a request to the UAE to transfer more of its citizens via ship, as well as a dedicated flight route.

US wants a swift end to war despite continuing to bomb Iran

US President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the end of the war with Iran could be near, with Washington signalling ​potential for both direct talks with Tehran's leadership and a winding down of the conflict even without a deal.

The remarks underscored the shifting, often contradictory timelines and statements from Washington about how and ‌when the war, now in its fifth week, might end.

"We'll be leaving very soon," Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday, saying the exit could take place "within two weeks, maybe two weeks, maybe three".

Asked if successful diplomacy was a prerequisite for the US to end what it calls "Operation Epic Fury", Trump said it was not.

"Iran doesn't have to make a deal, no," he said. "No, they don't have to make a deal with me".

Washington had previously threatened to intensify operations if Tehran did not accept a 15-point US ceasefire framework that had among its core demands that Iran commit ​not to pursue nuclear weapons, halt all uranium enrichment and fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The White House said Trump would address the nation "to provide an important update on Iran".

Rubio ​told Fox News' "Hannity" programme there was potential for a meeting between both sides "at some point" and the United States could "see the finish line".

"It's not today, it's not tomorrow, but it ⁠is coming," Rubio added.