President Donald Trump said he is “low-keying it” when it comes to the war with Iran as the conflict nears its sixth month.
“We are only semi-negotiating with them. We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money,” Trump told Axios on Sunday.
Trump said Tehran’s economy “is in very bad shape” and that the country cannot compensate its forces.
“It will work out. It always works out. It’s like a chess game,” Trump said of tensions between the U.S. and Iran.
The comments come as the war approaches the half-year mark, with the fighting straining U.S. relations with longtime allies and pushing up oil and gas prices following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The war has also polled as unpopular among Americans.
The national average for a gallon of regular gas was about $4 on Monday morning, according to AAA. A year ago, the average was about $3.14.
Meanwhile, Iran has laid out its demands for the U.S. as talks continue over reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, presented Tehran’s key demands Saturday. Iran and Oman have been involved in discussions surrounding the waterway.
In a message carried by Iranian state media, Zolghadr called on the U.S. to end its naval blockade in the strait, lift sanctions on Tehran and pay war reparations.
