Vice President JD Vance says the U.S. conflict with Iran could enter a \u201cmuch different phase\u201d within the next several months as the Trump administration tries to prevent Tehran from rebuilding its military capabilities while restoring stability around the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vance\u2019s comments came after President Donald Trump predicted that the war could end \u201cimmediately after\u201d the November midterm elections, although neither official offered a detailed timetable for how the conflict would conclude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe can\u2019t predict the future, but I think the president is right to say that this thing will enter a much different phase in a couple of months,\u201d Vance told the New York Post aboard Air Force Two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vance emphasized that Trump, as commander in chief, ultimately determines when U.S. military operations begin and end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
He also acknowledged public impatience with the conflict while arguing that current U.S. operations are more limited than earlier phases of the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vance said American forces are not presently engaged in what he characterized as aggressive operations, while Iran continues intermittent attacks on commercial shipping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The vice president described the conflict as unfolding in two distinct phases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere are really two phases to this thing, and the first phase is done,\u201d Vance said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He described that initial phase as an effort to destroy or seriously degrade Iran\u2019s nuclear program, conventional military capabilities, and ability to project power throughout the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vance said the second phase focuses on preventing Tehran from rebuilding those capabilities while trying to preserve broader regional stability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That effort remains complicated by continued attacks and disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world\u2019s most important energy corridors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Commercial traffic through the strait remains far below prewar levels despite U.S. military efforts to secure the waterway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reuters reported Wednesday that only four vessels crossed the strait on Tuesday, compared with approximately 125 large commercial vessels per day before the war began in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those public tracking figures do not necessarily capture ships operating with their transponders switched off for security reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Roughly one-fifth of the world\u2019s crude oil and liquefied natural gas traditionally moves through the Strait of Hormuz, making disruptions there significant for global energy markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
U.S. forces have spent months clearing mines and protecting commercial vessels, while American officials say Iranian forces continue attempting attacks or seizures in the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
U.S. officials said Monday that American forces destroyed two Iranian boats after they attempted to seize a Navy unmanned vessel operating in the strait.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The conflict has also imposed a growing financial cost on Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Congressional Budget Office estimates the war has cost approximately $38 billion and could continue adding roughly $3 billion per month if operations persist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vance played a role in negotiations that produced a June memorandum of understanding aimed at reducing hostilities and opening discussions over Iran\u2019s nuclear program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The agreement lowered the intensity of some direct fighting but did not end attacks around major shipping routes or eliminate broader tensions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump said last week that he believes oil prices will begin falling after the midterm elections and predicted that the Iran conflict would end shortly afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think the war will end immediately after the election because they can\u2019t hold out any longer,\u201d Trump told reporters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It remains unclear whether the administration expects diplomacy, additional military pressure, or some combination of the two to produce the change Trump and Vance are describing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vance said the immediate objective is to make sure Iran cannot rebuild the capabilities the United States says it destroyed earlier in the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For now, the fighting has not ended, commercial shipping remains disrupted, and American forces continue operating throughout the region, the New York Post reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Vance is now publicly signaling that the administration believes the current stage of the conflict may not last much longer in its present form.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Vice President JD Vance says the U.S. conflict with Iran could enter a \u201cmuch different phase\u201d within the next several…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":15072,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15071"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15071\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15073,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15071\/revisions\/15073"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tbdig.com\/divaxo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}