‘I don’t care’ if Iran negotiations are over

President Donald Trump shrugged off the potential collapse of peace talks with Iran on Monday, telling CNBC, “I don’t care if they end, to be honest.”

“I really don’t care. I couldn’t care less,” Trump told CNBC’s Eamon Javers in a phone call around noon Monday, saying he thought the protracted talks were “getting very boring.”

Trump was asked about reports that Iranian negotiators would cut off communication with the United States and that Tehran would take action to “completely block” the Strait of Hormuz due to Israel’s military operations in Lebanon.

Trump said he would “ask” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “What’s going on in Lebanon?” Reuters reported on Monday afternoon that Trump spoke to Netanyahu by phone.

The president also said he was not concerned about oil prices, which rose sharply after the report appeared in Iranian state media early Monday.

“I think oil is going to fall like a rock from very close, I mean very close range,” Trump said.

But he also insisted that Americans, who understand the importance of stopping Iran’s nuclear ambitions, will not mind rising gas prices as a result of the war.

“Once you explain that this is all about Iran having nuclear weapons, people will be willing to pay a little more,” he said.

Trump claimed prices at the pump would drop “very quickly.” However, he has repeatedly signaled that he is in no rush to restart stalled negotiations with Iran.

“If they’re done, they’re done. If they’re not, I think they took too much time. Frankly, I thought they were getting very boring,” Trump told CNBC.

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