Vance says new phase of Iran war to begin ‘in a couple of months’

America’s conflict with Iran will enter “much different phase” in a matter of months, says Vice President JD Vance.

By World Israel News Staff

Vice President JD Vance said the conflict with Iran is expected to enter a “much different phase” within the next several months, declaring that the initial stage of the American military campaign is essentially complete as Washington shifts its focus toward preventing Tehran from rebuilding its capabilities and restoring stability to the region.

Speaking aboard Air Force Two on Monday in an interview with the New York Post, Vance broadly backed President Donald Trump’s recent prediction that the conflict could wind down soon after the November 3 midterm elections, while stopping short of promising a specific end date.

“We can’t predict the future, but I think the president is right to say that this thing will enter a much different phase in a couple of months,” Vance said. “He’s also the commander in chief, so he’s the person who determines … when conflicts start and when they stop.”

Vance characterized the US campaign against Iran as having two distinct stages and said the first had already been completed.

“There are really two phases to this thing, and the first phase is done,” he said.

“The first phase was destroy the nuclear program, destroy their conventional military, destroy their ability to project power in a way that they were able to even a couple of years ago.”

The second stage, Vance said, would be to “ensure that they’re not able to rebuild and try to maintain as much global stability in the wake of that.”

His remarks suggest the administration views the conflict as moving away from the large-scale offensive operations that marked its opening months and toward a longer-running effort to contain Iran’s remaining military capacity, protect regional shipping and prevent Tehran from restoring weapons destroyed during the campaign.

Vance said the United States was no longer conducting what he described as aggressive military operations.

“I certainly understand there’s some impatience from the American people, but fundamentally what’s happening right now is that the United States is not engaged in aggressive operations. We’re just not,” he said.

The vice president instead pointed to continued Iranian attacks on commercial shipping and American efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway linking the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman through which roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed before the war.

Vance said traffic through Hormuz had recovered to “well over 50% of normal traffic.”

Vance’s prediction follows Trump’s more categorical declaration last week that the war would end immediately following the midterms.

“I think war is going to end immediately after the election because they can’t hold out any longer,” Trump told reporters September 9. “They’re desperate to try and affect the election.”

Trump provided no public evidence for his claim that Iran was prolonging the conflict to influence the US vote. He also said negotiations remained possible but were not the administration’s preferred course at the time.

“Yes, a negotiation could possibly happen, but it’s not something we’re looking at,” Trump said.

The administration is facing growing domestic pressure over the campaign as it approaches its seventh month.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reported Tuesday that Defense Department costs connected to the Iran war had reached approximately $38 billion through August 1 and could continue increasing by roughly $2 billion to $3 billion each month, depending on the intensity of operations.

CBO also warned that the rapid use of munitions could take years to replace and projected that disruptions to energy markets caused by the conflict could increase US inflation by about half a percentage point in early 2027. The Pentagon disputes suggestions that the military lacks sufficient weapons for other contingencies.

Political opposition has also grown in Congress.

Hours after Vance’s comments were reported Tuesday, the House voted 220-204 to approve another war powers resolution seeking to terminate unauthorized US military operations against Iran.

Seven Republicans joined all voting Democrats, up from four Republican defections in earlier House votes this summer.