Donald Trump acknowledged on Wednesday that the war with Iran had largely contributed to his party's debacle in the midterm elections, after Vice President JD Vance urged Republicans to be "honest" about the political cost of this unpopular conflict.

Asked by reporters about JD Vance's remarks that the war was "the reason for (the) defeat," Donald Trump responded, from the site of the future White House ballroom: "I think that's largely true because it did push up gas prices a bit in the short term."

"But at the same time, if I had to do it again, I would do it again because in the long term, it's the only solution. We can't let Iran have nuclear weapons," he added.