Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the Iran War would likely last a “few more weeks” and predicted Americans could see gas prices begin to fall once the conflict ends in a Sunday interview appearance on NBC News‘ Meet the Press.
Wright told host Kristen Welker the Strait of Hormuz remains unsafe for shipping, while also defending emergency market measures and said the administration had coordinated a historic international release of oil reserves to blunt price spikes as attacks and threats around the strait constricted shipments.
Why It Matters
Late last month, the U.S. and Israel targeted key military targets in Iran and killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other government leaders. Iran responded by launching missiles and drones targeting Israel and several Gulf Arab states that host U.S. armed forces.
Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz as U.S. and Israeli strikes intensified this past week, with cargo traffic effectively halted through the narrow maritime pathway that carries a fifth of the world’s oil. Oil spiked to over $100 a barrel last week, marking the first time in four years it has crossed that threshold, and remains close to that price even after the U.S. temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian oil at sea.
On Wednesday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said its members would release a record 400 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves to ease market pressure caused by threats to oil supplies traveling through the strait. However, some economists warned it would do little to reassure markets.
What To Know
On Sunday, Wright said the conflict would likely end in “a few more weeks,” aligning with his earlier statements in which he said operations would take “weeks, certainly not months,” and that gas prices should ease after Iran’s capability to threaten tankers in the strait is neutralized.
He suggested Americans could feel relief at the pump “after the conflict is over,” while Welker cited increases since the war began of 24 percent for gasoline and 32 percent for diesel. Earlier this month, GasBuddy data put the U.S. average at about $3.46 per gallon.
Wright said the Strait of Hormuz was not yet safe for shipping and that Iran had impeded flows since the conflict began. He added reopening the waterway was an objective as operations shift from degrading Iran’s long-range capabilities to addressing near-shore threats.
Meanwhile, the secretary told CNBC on Thursday the U.S. Navy was “not ready” yet to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, saying assets remained focused on destroying Iran’s offensive capabilities, though escorts could start by the end of the month.
The report followed a since-deleted X post on Wright’s account that incorrectly claimed a Navy-escorted tanker had transited the strait, briefly sending oil prices sharply lower, which underscored market sensitivity to any sign of restored flows.
How Much is Oil Per Barrel?
Brent crude touched $100 per barrel on March 12 as tensions escalated around the Strait of Hormuz and was last trading about 7 percent higher at $98.43 that day.
More than 30 countries agreed to inject 400 million barrels from strategic stockpiles, including 172 million barrels from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, in the largest emergency release on record, though the move did not fully calm markets.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday after U.S. airstrikes on Iran’s Kharg Island: “I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on March 4 that the war’s timeline was uncertain: “You can say four weeks, but it could be six, it could be eight, it could be three. Ultimately, we set the pace and the tempo.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, wrote on X on Thursday: “A college student with a basic understanding of geopolitics could tell you that Iran’s greatest leverage is this narrow passage through which a huge share of the world’s oil must travel. And now the administration is scrambling to contain the damage and deal with rising oil prices.”
John McKenzie, CEO of TMX Group, previously told Newsweek: “I usually find those things lead to unintended consequences. You create a different problem by trying to solve the first problem. The market will sort this out itself.”
Adi Imsirovic, an energy market expert with 35 years’ experience in oil trading and former global head of oil at Gazprom Marketing & Trading previously told Newsweek: “If governments try to control prices or play futures markets—that’s what the communists did in the Soviet Union, and that’s why the Soviet economy collapsed. You can lower the price, but then people lose trust in that price, and you can’t use it to manage your risk. You get killed twice. Stop the war, and then things will go back to normal eventually. That’s all I can say.”
What Happens Next
In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump wrote that “many countries” will send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open in conjunction with the U.S., but did not name any, only stating that “hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others, that are affected by this artificial constraint, will send Ships.”
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