US President Donald Trump suggested on Saturday that Iran has “virtually given up” any plans to develop nuclear weapons, one of his administration’s most frequently stated objectives in the war with Tehran, now in its eighth month.

Trump also claimed oil prices were currently decreasing, long elevated after Israel and the US launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28.

“Oil is coming down. Oil is right now lower, and it's been lower than it was under the Biden administration, and they did nothing about the fact that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters as he departed the White House to attend a rally in the state of Ohio.

“By the way, Iran, as you know, has virtually given up any plans of a nuclear weapon,” he added.

Iran has long denied accusations by the US and Israel that it seeks to develop nuclear weapons, a position reiterated by President Masoud Pezeshkian during his visit last month to New York for the UN General Assembly.

Pezeshkian said Tehran is not seeking nuclear weapons because of a religious prohibition, and offered to dilute its enriched uranium stockpiles under international verification.

Iran, however, has maintained that it will not compromise on its peaceful civilian nuclear program or make structural concessions unless the US lifts economic sanctions.

Source: Anadolu Agency

--Agencies