US PRESIDENT Donald Trump has told his aides that he’s willing to end the military operation against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, leaving the campaign to reopen it for a later date, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing administration officials. In recent days, Trump and his aides assessed that a mission to pry open the chokepoint would push the conflict beyond his timeline of four to six weeks, the Daily said in a report. According to the report,Trump decided that the US should achieve its main goals of hobbling Iran’s navy and its missile stocks and wind down current hostilities while pressuring Tehran diplomatically to resume the free flow of trade. If that fails, Washington would press allies in Europe and the Gulf to take the lead on reopening the strait, the WSJ said, quoting officials. At a media briefing on Monday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the President and the chief of the Pentagon have always stated a four to six-week estimated timeline for the military operation. “We’re on day 30 today,” she said. Leavitt also indicated that theArab countries can be asked toshare the burden of the militaryoperation in Iran. “I think it’ssomething the President wouldbe quite interested in. I won’t get ahead of him on that but certainly it’s an idea, something that I think you’ll hear more from him on,” she said to a question of whether countries such as Kuwait, the UAE and Saudi Arabia should pick up the tab for the Iran operation.

 

US TO FINISH IRAN OPERATION INWEEKS,SAYSRUBIO : The United States expects to completeitsmilitaryobjectives against Iran “in weeks, not months,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, as he outlinedWashington’s conditions for ending the conflict and warned Tehran against attempting tocontrolkey global waterways. Speaking in an interview to Al Jazeera on Monday (local time), Rubio said there had been “messages and some direct talks going on between someinsideof Iran and theUS, primarily through intermediaries,” even as military operations continued. He stressed that Washington’s core demands remained unchanged: “Iran cannever -- theIranian regime can never have nuclear weapons,and theyneed tostop sponsoring terrorism,and they need to stopbuildingweapons that can threaten their neighbours.” Rubio said US forces were “well on our way or ahead of schedule” in achieving their statedobjectives,including the destruction of Iran’s air force and navy, and a “significant reduction in the number of missile launchers that they have.” “We will achieve those objectives… in weeks, not months,” he said. The Secretary made clear that any Iranian attempt to assert control over the Strait of Hormuz would be unacceptable. “No one in the world can acceptit,”hesaid,warning that suchamovewould setaprecedent for other nations to claim international waterways. “The United States will not accept that condition. It’s an illegal condition that they’re demanding. That’s just not going tohappen,”Rubioadded. He said the strait “will be open one way or another,” either through Iranian compliance with international law or through action by a coalition of nations.