Donald Trump’s war with Iran could continue until the end of his presidency in January 2029, despite public claims from the White House that the conflict is close to ending, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
The newspaper said senior advisers, including Vice-President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, had discussed the possibility that fighting could last beyond the next presidential inauguration.
The private assessments contrast with Mr Trump’s latest public prediction. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, he said the conflict would end “immediately after” the US midterm elections on November 3, arguing that Iran would not be able to withstand continued economic pressure.
Mr Trump’s administration initially presented the operation as lasting between four and six weeks. It has now entered its seventh month, with renewed attacks between the United States and Iran and no clear settlement in sight.
The prolonged conflict has also created growing political pressure ahead of the midterms. Republicans are defending narrow majorities in Congress, while rising fuel prices and wider living costs have intensified public concern about the war.
Oil prices rose above $100 a barrel this week as military activity increased and disruption around the Strait of Hormuz raised fears over global supplies. The rise has fed through to petrol prices in the United States, adding to the economic risks facing the Trump administration.
Mr Vance declined last week to predict that the fighting would be over by the midterms and rejected describing the confrontation as a war. The vice-president said the administration would respond to Iranian attacks while avoiding an artificial timetable for the conflict’s conclusion.
The Wall Street Journal report suggests that officials are preparing for a far longer confrontation than the one originally outlined by Mr Trump, potentially leaving Iran as a defining foreign-policy and domestic political issue for the remainder of his term.
