WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices fell below $100 per barrel following the comments from President Donald Trump Tuesday regarding ending the Middle East war.
President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that the U.S. 'will be leaving [Iran] very soon' and U.S. military operations targeting Iran could be over within 'two weeks, maybe three.'
'But we're finishing the job. We want to knock out every single thing they have. It's possible that we'll make a deal before that,' he added.
Brent crude briefly traded around $99 Wednesday, its lowest level in a week, before scaling back up to $101.
The prices are 40 percent higher than the pre-war levels.
WTI Crude price dipped to $97.30 in early morning trading before going up.
The U.S. 'will not have anything to do with' what happens in the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said, adding that it is the responsibility of countries that depend on it.
There's 'no reason for us to do this,' Trump said after signing an executive order at the Oval office Tuesday. 'That's not for us. That'll be for France. That'll be for whoever's using the strait.'
He said fuel prices will come down as soon as the U.S. ends its military operations.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. 'can see the finish line' in the war against Iran as it is achieving its objectives earlier than expected.
'We're well on our way. We are on or ahead of schedule on each of those four objectives and we can see the finish line. It's not today, it's not tomorrow but it's coming,' Rubio told Fox News.
On the other side, Tehran said it's prepared for a much longer fight.
Iran's president Masoud Pezeshkian said on Tuesday that his country has the 'necessary will' to end the Middle East war as long as the United States and Israel agree to meet certain conditions.
He made the comments in a phone call with the President of European Council, Iranian state media reported.
It quoted the moderate leader as saying that Iran is ready to stop fighting, provided it receives guarantee that the country won't be attacked again.
Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview Tuesday that it is prepared to wage a war for 'at least six months.'
'We do not set any deadlines for defending ourselves. We will defend our country and our people as far as necessary and by any means required,' he told Al Jazeera.
Araghchi said he has received messages from Steve Witkoff, the U.S. envoy to the Middle East, and that the two sides have communicated indirectly through mediators.
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