Gas price hike unimportant amid Iran war: Trump

The impact of joint US-Israeli operations in Iran has already begun affecting the US energy market. Gas prices have already risen by 7 per cent in the last six days, with indications of further increases in the near future.

However, President Trump has said he is not at all concerned about rising gas prices at this moment. His entire focus is now on the Iran war.

In an interview with Reuters on Thursday, March 5, responding to a question about rising gas prices, Trump said, "I'm not thinking about it at all. Gas prices are rising now, but they will quickly come down as soon as the war ends. So if gas prices rise, let them rise. There's a war going on in Iran now, and that is far, far more important than rising gas prices."

The United States has underground emergency oil reserves in Louisiana and Texas. The amount of oil stored in these two states currently constitutes the world's largest emergency oil reserve. However, Trump told Reuters he does not plan to use these reserves for now.

President Trump further stated that once ship movements through the Strait of Hormuz normalise, the global energy market will return to its previous state, and that will happen soon. "The main reason for the high energy market is reduced ship movement through the Strait of Hormuz. But it will normalise soon because within a short time, US forces will send the Iranian navy to the bottom of the sea," Trump told Reuters.

Dialogue between Tehran and Washington regarding Iran's nuclear programme took place for 21 days from February 6 to February 27. The talks ended on February 27 without any agreement.

The very next day, on February 28, US military forces launched 'Operation Epic Fury' in Iran. In coordination with Washington, Israel also launched 'Operation Roaring Lion' in Iran at the same time.

The war has been ongoing for seven days now, and in response to attacks, Iran has been launching waves of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel and US military bases in the Middle East.