In this article, Donald Trump addressed the American public on Tuesday, April 1, without his usual cap but with a tie, a podium, and an American flag in the background. It was over a month after the start of the war in the Middle East. He spoke for 20 minutes in a speech filled with hyperbole, typical of Donald Trump, but much more restrained than usual. The U.S. President did not make any announcements. He only summarized his recent statements.
He almost read verbatim some of his recent messages from his Trump Social network. He still did not provide a specific timeline for the end of hostilities. The horizon remains vague, around two to three weeks, but he claims to have achieved his goals regarding Iran. “Their navy has disappeared, their air force has disappeared, their missiles are almost out of service,” the head of state said. “Together, these actions will paralyze their uranium army, annihilate its ability to support terrorist groups, and prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons,” he continued.
As the midterm elections approach in November, the main goal was to reassure Americans that this very unpopular war was necessary and is now over. Donald Trump avoided mentioning any potential deployment of ground troops. He affirmed that Iran would be hit “extremely hard” if no agreement is reached.
President Trump also tried to reassure about fuel prices. The psychological barrier of $4 per gallon of gasoline has been exceeded in the U.S. He called this a “short-term” phenomenon and claimed that the American economy has “never been stronger,” despite contradicting figures, while stating that investments were pouring in. However, the effect has not yet been felt. By the end of his speech, the price of Brent crude oil had risen by more than 4% to over $105 per barrel.
Trump also reiterated that the U.S., as oil exporters, does not depend on supplies passing through the blocked Strait of Hormuz by Iran. He urged countries affected by the blockage of this strategic artery to “take care of it,” promising not to “abandon” his Gulf allies.
