New Delhi: US President Donald Trump on Saturday rejected reports that Russia may have shared intelligence with Iran to help target US forces in the Middle East, saying such information is “not helping Iran much” as the conflict continues to escalate.Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One during a visit to Miami, Trump suggested that even if Moscow had provided Tehran with targeting information, it would have made no difference on the battlefield.“I hope they’re not. If you look at what’s happened with Iran in the last week, if they’re getting information, it’s not helping them much,” Trump said.The US President did not confirm reports that US intelligence agencies believe Russia may have provided information to Iran to target US military personnel and assets in the region.However, he indicated that even if such intelligence had been shared, Iran had gained little from it.Asked whether Russian aid to Iran could affect US-Russia relations, Trump dismissed the concern.Trump responded, “They’ll say we do it against them.” “Will they not say that we do this against them?”Trump made the comments after attending a dignified transfer ceremony for six US Army reservists killed in a drone strike in Kuwait, a day after the United States and Israel launched military operations against Iran.The weeks-long conflict has escalated across the Middle East, hitting global markets and raising concerns over energy supplies.Trump’s comments come days after the US Treasury Department announced a 30-day waiver to allow India to continue purchasing crude oil and petroleum products from Russia.The decision was criticized by lawmakers in Washington.Democratic Representative Ted Lieu of California criticized the move in a post on Twitter and urged the administration to reverse the decision.Liu said, “Withdraw your decision to lift the oil embargo on Russia. Helping Russia is treasonous conduct on your part.” “Meanwhile, Russia is assisting Iran in targeting US troops.”However, India says it does not need permission from any country to buy Russian oil.According to a senior government official quoted by PTI, the US waiver merely removes friction rather than shaping India’s energy policy.The Iran conflict has also caused global oil prices to rise sharply. The war has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route that carries about 20 million barrels of oil a day from the Persian Gulf to global markets.Ships are unable to navigate safely and major energy facilities in the region have been damaged, disrupting supplies to some of the world’s largest oil producers.
Trump denies using strategic oil reserves
Asked whether the United States would use its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to cushion rising oil prices, Trump dismissed the idea for now.“We have a lot of oil. Our country has a tremendous amount of oil,” Trump said. “There’s a lot of oil in there. He’ll heal pretty quickly.”The reserve currently holds more than 415 million barrels of crude oil, although its total capacity exceeds 700 million barrels.Trump also suggested he was prepared to take other steps to stabilize prices if necessary, saying, “If something were to happen, I would do that, just to take a little bit of pressure off.”