“I think this situation hurts everybody. The longer the Strait of Hormuz is closed and the longer we try to reach an agreement that never comes, the stronger Iran becomes,” Graham said on Meet the Press, NBC News reports.
Graham added that “nothing shows that the current rulers are any different when it comes to the goals of the regime, which are terrorizing the world, destroying Israel and attacking us.” He called on President Donald Trump to “further weaken” Iran.
Deadlock in negotiations
“What President Trump did was militarily extraordinary, but there are other targets and ways we can harm Iran,” the South Carolina senator said.
Graham’s comments come at a time of stalemate in negotiations between the United States and Iran, which have yet to produce an agreement to end the conflict.
At the same time, the long-term closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key sea passage for oil tankers, has led to a rise in global oil prices, and thus fuel prices for Americans.
The average price of unleaded fuel in the US has risen 51 percent since the US took its first military action against Iran more than two months ago.
“I have good news,” Graham told the host. “Fuel prices will drop as soon as we contain Iran.”
Trump on China
Iran’s foreign minister said Friday that his country’s leadership “has no confidence” in American negotiators. The statement came on the same day that Trump returned to the US from a multi-day summit in China, where he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The US president told Fox News that he had not asked the Chinese leadership for help on Iran.
“Xi agrees with me, he wants this to end. He’d be happy to help. If he wants to help, great, but we don’t need help. You know the problem with help: when someone helps you, they always want something in return. That’s how it works,” Trump said.
Last week, Trump also came under fire for his statement that he “doesn’t take into account the financial situation of Americans in the slightest” while negotiating the end of the war with Iran. Such comments have raised concerns among Republicans ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
Consequences on the domestic political scene
Graham, however, dismissed concerns about the election.
“It’s worth being out of office. If I had to give up my position to make sure Iran never got a nuclear weapon, I would,” he said.
In doing so, he reiterated the views Trump expressed last week:
“I will not let the election dictate what happens to Iran, because they must not have nuclear weapons.”
The president also said he was aware his actions against Iran would “damage” the ratings of Republicans vying for re-election, as some members of the party consider how closely they should align their campaigns with Trump.
“I told my people, ‘I’m sorry to do this to you, but I’m going to screw up your polls a little bit, because we have to stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons, they’re crazy,’” Trump said last week.
(Vijesti.ba)
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