‘It Won't Be Long’: Trump Says Iran War Could ‘Wrap Up Soon’, But Not Likely This Week

Last Updated:March 17, 2026, 08:35 IST

When asked if the conflict could end this week, Trump initially responded, “Yeah, sure,” before clarifying that an immediate resolution was unlikely.

US President Donald Trump on Monday said that the ongoing war with Iran could end “soon", though he indicated that hostilities are unlikely to conclude within the current week.

While speaking to reporters at the White House, the US President struck an optimistic tone about the war, which is now in its third week. When asked if the conflict could end this week, he initially responded, “Yeah, sure," before clarifying that an immediate resolution was unlikely.

“I don’t think so, but it’ll be soon. It won’t be long. And we’re going to have a much safer world when it’s wrapped up. It’ll be wrapped up soon," he said.

The US President also defended recent military actions against Iran, claiming that the strikes had prevented a much larger global conflict. “Had we not done this, you would have had a nuclear war that would have evolved into World War III," he said, asserting that the US had “decimated" Iran’s nuclear programme.

“Iran should not have a nuclear weapon. They should not have it. They have no navy, they have no air force. They have no anti-aircraft weapons. They have no leadership. They set up a new leadership and now they are gone," Trump asserted.

Trump said that he has watched Iran for the last 20 years and that Iran’s leadership was full of “violent and vicious" people, claiming that 32,000 people were killed in the protests that erupted in December.

Trump further claimed that Iran could have developed a nuclear weapon within a month if the strikes had not taken place, and warned that such a weapon would have been used against Israel and countries in the Gulf region.

He further lashed out at former US President Barack Obama over his “horrible" nuclear deal with Iran, saying it would have enabled Iran to develop a nuclear weapon three years ago, which would have been eventually used against the United States.

The remarks come amid escalating tensions across the Gulf as the US-Israel-Iran entered Day 18, with no breakthrough yet in the conflict that erupted on February 28.

Iran has been carrying out attacks on US bases and interests across the Middle East since the conflict with the United States and Israel began on February 28. The war started after US and Israeli strikes on Iran that killed the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and caused major damage to key government and military infrastructure.

(With inputs from agencies)

News world ‘It Won't Be Long’: Trump Says Iran War Could ‘Wrap Up Soon’, But Not Likely This Week

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