Former US President Barack Obama has blamed President Donald Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran for rising fuel and commodity prices in the United States, describing the conflict as unnecessary and avoidable through diplomacy.

Obama, who spoke on Saturday at a campaign rally in Cleveland, Ohio, argued that the war had worsened the economic burden on American households, pointing to rising oil and diesel prices linked to disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, a major global oil transit route.

“The current president chose to make a series of bad decisions,” Obama said, according to AFP, singling out the military confrontation with Iran as the most consequential.

“Most importantly, he decided to start an unnecessary war that nobody asked for,” the former president declared.

He argued that Iran’s ability to disrupt traffic through the Strait of Hormuz had given Tehran significant leverage over international oil supplies, with consequences extending beyond the immediate conflict to the prices of everyday goods.

“Iran war is the reason why the price of just about everything is up,” Obama said.

He added that the conflict had pushed up oil and diesel prices, linking the increase to the strategic importance of the waterway through which a substantial share of the world’s oil supply passes.

The former president also used the rally to defend his diplomatic approach to Iran, contrasting it with Trump’s military action and recalling the 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated during his administration.

Under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Iran agreed to restrictions on its nuclear programme and international inspections in exchange for sanctions relief. Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in 2018 during his first term.

Obama maintained that the agreement had constrained Iran’s nuclear ambitions without requiring American military strikes.

“Iran didn’t have nuclear weapons because I had put a deal in place that everybody acknowledged kept them from getting nukes. And I didn’t have to fire a missile to do it. I just had to engage in diplomacy,” he said.

Beyond the war and its economic consequences, Obama turned his criticism towards Trump’s broader record, accusing his administration of presiding over two years of chaos, cruelty, corruption and incompetence.

He urged Americans to use the November 3 midterm elections to express their dissatisfaction with the administration and vote for political change.

“After two years of chaos and cruelty and corruption and incompetence, the likes of which we have not seen in the modern era, you get a chance to say, ‘Enough is enough,’” Obama said.

“We are voting for change right here in Ohio.”

The Cleveland appearance formed part of the Democrats’ final campaign push ahead of the midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress.

Obama also urged voters to act decisively, warning against delaying their participation in the electoral process.

“Don’t procrastinate, don’t equivocate,” he said.