Trump says US may exit Iran war soon and threatens to quit NATO as oil crisis escalates

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WASHINGTON/JERUSALEM/CAIRO – The United States will end its war on Iran fairly soon and could return for “spot hits” if needed, President Donald Trump told Reuters on April 1, hours before he was scheduled to make a prime-time address to the nation.

Mr Trump also said he would state in the speech, which is due at 9am on April 2 (Singapore time), that he was considering withdrawing the US from the NATO alliance.

Asked when the US would consider the Iran war over, he said: “I can’t tell you exactly... We’re going to be out pretty quickly.”

US action has ensured Iran will not have nuclear arms, he said. “They won’t have a nuclear weapon because they are incapable of that now, and then I’ll leave, and I’ll take everybody with me, and if we have to, we’ll come back to do spot hits.”

Quitting NATO

Global oil supplies are expected to be hit twice as hard in April as in March, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on April 1, underlining the urgent need for an end to the conflict Mr Trump began with Israel on Feb 28.

He said separately on social media that Iran had asked for a ceasefire but that he would not consider it until Tehran ceased blocking the Strait of Hormuz, a major fuel shipment route. There was no immediate Iranian comment.

Two security sources from Pakistan, which is mediating in the conflict, earlier told Reuters that Islamabad had proposed a temporary ceasefire to both sides but had not heard back from either.

Mr Trump has signalled that he could wind down the war within weeks, even without a deal, and scaled up threats to pull the US out of the NATO defence alliance if European states did not help stop Iran from threatening the waterway.

In his remarks to Reuters, Mr Trump said he would express his disgust with NATO for what he considers the alliance’s lack of support for US objectives in Iran.

He said he is “absolutely” considering an attempt to withdraw the US from NATO.

European states took pains to appear unruffled and French Junior Army Minister Alice Rufo said operations by NATO in the Strait of Hormuz would be a breach of international law.

“I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and (Russian President Vladimir) Putin knows that too, by the way,” Mr Trump told Britain’s Daily Telegraph, saying he had moved beyond merely reconsidering US membership.

Trump to address nation

On March 31, Mr Trump said he could be leaving Iran within two or three weeks even without a deal, underscoring growing unease about a conflict that has killed thousands, spread across the region and caused unprecedented energy disruption.

IEA head Fatih Birol said the main issue so far from Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz was the lack of jet fuel and diesel.

“We are seeing that in Asia, but soon, I think, in April or May, it will come to Europe,” Dr Birol told a podcast with Mr Nicolai Tangen, the head of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund.

The loss of oil in April would be twice that lost in March, he said.

Businesses around the world have been hit by the conflict, with cosmetics and tea among the latest sectors to report pain.

The US had previously threatened to intensify operations if Tehran did not accept a 15-point US ceasefire framework demanding that Iran not pursue nuclear weapons or uranium enrichment and fully reopens the Strait of Hormuz.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News Channel’s Hannity programme there was potential for a “direct meeting at some point” and the US could “see the finish line”.

“It’s not today, it’s not tomorrow, but it is coming,” he added.

Tanker hit off Qatar, blazes in Bahrain and Kuwait

Attacks took place on multiple fronts early on April 1, with drones hitting fuel tanks at Kuwait’s international airport, causing a big blaze, and the authorities in Bahrain reporting a fire at an undisclosed company facility from an Iranian attack.

Qatar said an oil tanker leased to state-owned QatarEnergy was hit by an Iranian cruise missile in Qatari waters, with damage above the waterline but no injuries or environmental damage.

Explosions were heard in several areas of Tehran after US-Israeli air attacks, according to Iranian state media.

State TV showed convoys of cars waving Iranian flags and pro-government rallies in several cities on a national day marking the establishment of the Islamic republic in 1979.

Shahid Haghani Port, Iran’s largest passenger terminal, was hit by an overnight air strike, but there were no casualties, deputy regional governor Ahmad Nafisi told state media, calling it a “criminal” attack on civilian infrastructure.

Oil tumbled more than 3 per cent on April 1, reversing earlier gains, on Mr Trump’s talk of a war exit, and MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up more than 4.7 per cent, its biggest one-day increase since November 2022.

Higher oil and fuel prices are weighing on US household finances and are a political headache for Mr Trump and his Republican party before the November midterm elections, with two-thirds of Americans believing the US should work to exit the Iran war quickly, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.

Houthis launch coordinated attack

Missile debris struck several areas in central Israel following an early morning rocket volley from Iran. There were no immediate reports of fatalities from the Israeli authorities.

Many of Israel’s 19 deaths so far have been from falling rocket debris following interceptions.

Yemen’s Houthis, who joined the regional war in recent days, said they carried out a missile attack on Israel, describing it as a joint operation with Iran and the Tehran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, the first such collaboration between them during the war.

Israel’s military said air defence systems were operating to intercept the threats.

The war has also revived conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

At least seven people were killed and 24 wounded in two Israeli strikes in the Beirut area, the Lebanese Health Ministry said.

Israel said it was targeting two senior Hezbollah figures.

Indonesia called for an inquiry into the deaths of three of its peacekeepers following Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon, which have also killed journalists and medics. REUTERS