President Donald Trump on Sunday said the United States could ultimately remain in Iran and “keep the oil” in a similar manner to his administration’s move to control some of Venezuela’s oil reserves.
“We’ll ultimately get out [of Iran], unless we decide to stay and keep the oil like Venezuela,” Trump said at the Trump International Golf Course in Ireland, adding that the U.S. revenue from Venezuela has “paid for the war many times.”
The president did not elaborate on a possible oil agreement with Iran or whether he would be willing to deploy troops in the country. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday.
Just over six months ago, the United States began strikes against Iran in a bid to end the country’s nuclear aspirations as Trump has repeatedly said Tehran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.
Iran has launched strikes on commercial oil vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway through which a significant portion of the world’s traded oil passes, leading to spikes in gasoline and energy prices worldwide and in the United States.
On Saturday, the British military’s UK Maritime Trade Organization said it received a report of an “incident” in the Hormuz Strait as a “vessel has been struck by an unknown projectile while transiting” the waterway. A fire broke out on the ship and local officials are moving to evacuate crew members, it said.
Speaking at the Irish Open golf championship, Trump also said that the price of gas would “drop like a rock” once the Iran war ended. He added that he believes the Iran war will end this year.
Trump said that he would only make the “right deal” and wouldn’t do one that he believes wouldn’t be good for U.S. interests while asserting that Iran was “calling constantly” for peace talks.
Earlier this year, the U.S. military launched an operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro before extraditing him to the United States. He faces felony drug charges and pleaded not guilty in January.
The White House in August announced a deal with Venezuela under which the United States takes control of 65 billion barrels from the South American country’s vast oil reserves.
“This deal is a huge win for both the American and Venezuelan people,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a post on X in late August. “It demonstrates how President Trump’s bold foreign policy is driving America First wins: securing stable reserves and low-cost oil in our Hemisphere and lowering gas prices here at home.”
Oil prices have remained relatively elevated in recent days amid strikes in Saudi Arabia. The price for both Brent crude and West Texas International barrels remained above $100 as of Sunday afternoon.
According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the average gasoline price in the United States increased roughly 17 cents to $4.31 per gallon in the past seven days.
Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry last week announced it was shutting down its East-West oil pipeline after it was attacked and as the Yemeni-based Houthi terrorist organization moved to capture cities closer to the Red Sea in recent days. The Houthis in the past week also launched strikes inside Saudi Arabia.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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