Washington, Oct 17 (IANS) US President Donald Trump has said the military campaign against Iran would end soon, claimed that American operations in Venezuela had brought enormous economic benefits, and warned of an economic depression if Democrats regained control of Congress in next month's midterm elections.

Addressing a Republican campaign rally in Dalton, Georgia, Trump presented an expansive account of his administration's foreign policy, military operations and economic record. He also defended tariffs, announced fresh election promises and urged supporters to treat the November 3 vote as a referendum on his presidency.

"We're doing just as well in Iran. That will be over very, very soon and they will never have a nuclear weapon," Trump told cheering supporters.

The President claimed that American military operations had devastated Iran's armed forces, destroying aircraft, naval vessels and military infrastructure.

"Their navy's gone, their military's gone, their air force is totally wiped out," he said.

Trump claimed that Iran's 159 naval vessels had been sunk within three days and that 289 aircraft had been destroyed. The figures could not be independently verified from his remarks.

He also defended his decision to launch military operations against Tehran, saying Iran had been close to acquiring nuclear weapons and posed a threat to Israel, the Middle East and eventually the United States.

Trump acknowledged that the conflict had affected energy prices but argued that military action had been necessary despite strong economic conditions at home.

He described the continuing naval blockade of Iran as successful and said no Iranian ship had managed to pass through it.

Turning to Venezuela, Trump claimed that an earlier American military operation had achieved its objectives in less than two days.

"48 hours that war was done, 48 hours," he said, before suggesting that the decisive phase had lasted less than an hour.

The President said Washington was now benefiting from Venezuelan petroleum resources following the military intervention.

"We're taking out billions and billions and billions of dollars' worth of oil," he said.

Trump went further, claiming that combining American and Venezuelan petroleum resources gave Washington unprecedented influence over global energy supplies.

He also praised the current relationship between Washington and Caracas, linking it directly to the outcome of the military operation.

In another significant foreign policy assertion, Trump said his administration had reached an agreement with Denmark concerning Greenland.

"And we just made a deal for Greenland. A lot of people don't know that," he said.

He did not provide details of the agreement but described it as a major real estate achievement.

Trump also joked about renaming the Strait of Hormuz the Trump Strait and recounted conversations about changing geographical names, including the Gulf of Mexico.

On the domestic front, the President claimed that American incomes, employment, exports and stock market performance had reached record levels under his administration.

He said manufacturing and construction employment were expanding, with 70,000 manufacturing jobs and 50,000 construction jobs created this year.

Trump also claimed that his administration had secured investment commitments exceeding $21 trillion in 15 months, with major pharmaceutical, automobile and industrial companies expanding their American operations.

He credited tariffs with encouraging foreign manufacturers to relocate production to the United States.

The President renewed his promise to distribute $5,000 to every adult American citizen if Republicans won both chambers of Congress.

He estimated the programme would cost approximately $1 trillion and said recipients would have to spend the money within the United States. He offered no detailed funding or implementation plan.

Trump also asserted that the United States was ahead of China in advanced artificial intelligence and suggested replacing the term artificial intelligence with super intelligence.

Much of his speech focused on Georgia's closely watched Senate and gubernatorial contests.

Trump repeatedly attacked Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff, endorsed Republican challenger Mike Collins and backed Rick Jackson for governor.

He accused Democrats of supporting weak immigration enforcement and warned that their return to power would reverse his administration's border security policies.

The President claimed that no undocumented migrants had been admitted through the southern border during the previous 17 months. He also defended deportations and the designation of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organisation.

Trump urged Republicans to turn out in large numbers, acknowledging that his party traditionally faced difficulties mobilising voters when he was not personally on the ballot.

"In this election, I'm asking you to -- you have to pretend I'm on the ballot," he said.

The November 3 midterm elections will determine control of the House of Representatives and the Senate for the remaining two years of Trump's presidential term. The outcome will shape his administration's ability to advance legislation on taxation, immigration, healthcare and domestic spending.

--IANS

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