Trump says Iran war 'ending fairly soon'

President Trump gave a surprise briefing to reporters on Monday following a meeting with Qatari PM Sheikh Mohammed. In his remarks, Trump said that the war in Iran is "effectively over." The two, he said, spoke about the perspective of Middle Eastern nations as it regards the conflict in Iran and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which he said has been a "total lockdown."

"I've agreed that Iran cannot have—and everybody's agreeing Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, and that's a non-negotiable point," Trump told reporters. "They understand that. They accept that. They don't admit that they accept it and they will tell you that they don't accept it, but they accept it 100 percent, more than 100 percent."

He said that while the US is "fully locked and loaded with the best equipment ever made," he does not believe "there's going to be any reason to use it."

As for the impact of the war on gas prices, which was a major factor in the smackdown the American people gave Trump and the GOP in the recent midterms, Trump said the oil is flowing.

"More oil's come out of the strait over the last week than at any point in the history of the Hormuz Strait, so we're doing very well," he said. He also said that oil is coming to the US out of Venezuela, another nation where the US has taken military action in the past year, ousting leader Nicolas Maduro and dragging him to New York to face trial. The new administration has been more open to US oil interests.

America's military action in the region, he said, is coming to an end. "Israel and the entire Middle East are protected from Iranian danger and threats," Trump said, "and we're seeing momentum toward the end of this conflict. I think it's going to be ending fairly soon."

He went on to say that the "Iran militarily is effectively over. We're just keeping it the status quo, and we're doing that really at the behest of countries that are their neighbors. But it's a failing country. It's got 301 percent inflation. It's got problems like you don't want to even think about.

"They're not paying their military. They're not paying their guard. Their navy is gone. Their air force is gone. They have 158 ships. They're underwater. They have 268 planes that were scattered all over the runways of Iran. So, their military is essentially gone. Their manufacturing capability is reduced to about —they can still make some limited numbers of missiles and drones, but it's basically about 85 percent gone.

"And they're talking to us, and they're talking very politely. And we'll see what happens, but there's a good chance that that could get ended. So, at the conclusion of the military engagement, the American people and the people of the world will be far safer and more secure than they've been in many, many years because Iran was killing many people."

Trump said that the current war actually began with the Iranian Revolution in 1979 when the Western-leaning Shah was deposed and a religious caliphate was installed. This transformed the nation from one that was open to the West and allowed women to move about freely to one with strict Islamic legal codes.

"It's a nasty place," Trump said, "but we think that it's in pretty good shape. We'll see what happens. I don't guarantee anything, but if we do have to go back in, we are locked and loaded and ready to go."