Trump: Iran peace deal possible in ‘two or three days’

President Trump on Tuesday said a peace deal with Iran could be reached within the next “two or three days.”

The president made the remark to reporters while in New York after attending Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs. He said a deal would soon be reached despite the recent missile exchange between Israel and Iran.

“They were going back and forth, and now they both agreed, through me, to stop, and now we’re in the final throes of what will be a very, very good deal that will not in any way allow nuclear weapons,” the president said.

After the deal is reached, Trump said the Strait of Hormuz will “open up immediately upon signing, which could be in two or three days.”

Reopening the strait has been one of the U.S.’s major conditions, as its closure has resulted in the cutoff of roughly 20 percent of the world’s oil exports out of the Middle East, causing energy prices to soar.

Vice President Vance made similar remarks in an interview with Fox News Monday night, saying that Iranian negotiators are “putting some real things on the table.”

“I don’t assume that anybody’s acting in good faith,” he said in a “Jesse Watters Primetime” interview. “Obviously, we’ve been very involved in these negotiations, Jesse. We’re going to take the attitude of ‘accomplish the president’s mission, but verify over the long term that the Iranians are keeping their end of the bargain.”

Vance later said that Iran does not “want this war to continue. It’s not in their best interests.” But if the deal is reached, the vice president added that “it’s going to be a home run for the American people.”

The president’s remarks also came shortly after two U.S. service members aboard an Apache helicopter were rescued after their vehicle, one of many crucial to the U.S. blockade in the strait, crashed near Oman’s coast. Trump said the two crew members were “fine.”

The ceasefire has shakily held together since April, with some flare-ups not rendering the halt in hostilities moot.

Early on Sunday, Iran retaliated against Israeli attacks in Lebanon. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed its response was successful, though the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) intercepted the Iranian ballistic missiles. Iranian and Pakistani mediators have maintained that a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is critical to the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.

Israeli officials called for a swift, decisive response, with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir calling for Tehran to “burn.” But Trump urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold off on any further attacks, having previously blasted him as “f—ing crazy” over the Israeli strikes on Lebanon.

Trump on Sunday said that Netanyahu and other Israeli officials “won’t have any choice” if the U.S. and Iran strike a deal. Netanyahu, however, said on Monday in response to the president that Israel will strike at Iran “whenever necessary.”