Vance says low oil prices now ‘goal number one’ in Iran war as U.S. threatens new economic pressure

Keeping gas prices low is now the United States’ “goal number one” in the Iran war, Vice President JD Vance has said, as Washington threatened an indefinite naval blockade and signaled it would soon intensify economic pressure on Tehran . The comments appeared to be the latest shift in the public rationale for the conflict, with Vance ranking Iran’s nuclear ambitions second. The vice president’s remarks came as the Trump administration embraced a long-term effort to impose pain on the Islamic Republic, despite growing signs of strain on American forces and domestic pressure ahead of the Midterm elections. President Donald Trump has suggested a shift away from military force in favor of “low-keying it” with economic pressure. That followed a deadly cycle of tit-for-tat exchanges that produced no clear resolution and depleted U.S. reserves of missile interceptors.

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