In a primetime address to the nation, United States (US) President Donald Trump said his country’s core strategic objectives were nearing completion in Iran but offered nothing new in terms of the trajectory of the war.

Trump says they are close to finishing the job and again set out a timeline of two to three weeks, as he sought to make the case to an American public increasingly sceptical about the war and its growing economic impact.

Trump offered little new in his prime-time address, speaking for 19 minutes but revealing similar themes that he’s stated before.

He reiterated that key objectives including crippling Iran’s military capabilities were nearing completion but warned that Iran would be hit hard by the US in the next two to three weeks and be returned to the stone age where they belong.

Trump warned that in the absence of a deal with Iran, US would target that country’s electric generating capacity, again asserting that talks were ongoing and contradicting the public position of Iran’s leadership.

Iran has not appeared ready to make any key concessions towards a political offramp as they believed their chokehold over the Strait of Hormuz will have painful economic consequences on its enemies.

Trump also suggested that countries that depended on shipments through the Strait of Hormuz should simply take it.

While analysts had hoped for a clearer understanding of Trump’s thinking toward ending the conflict, that remained murky as he saying the US had all the cards and that Iran had none.

–SABC–