‘Take the oil’: Trump’s warning to Iran as Strait of Hormuz crisis sends crude to $111 a barrel
Earlier, Trump said that if Tehran does not reopen the strait, he would target Iran’s power plants, oil wells, desalination plants and Kharg Island, which handles 90 per cent of Tehran’s oil exports.
US President Donald Trump on Friday said Washington could “easily” reopen the Strait of Hormuz with a little more time, days ahead of his deadline for Iran to end the blockade on the waterway, which accounted for around 20 per cent of global energy supplies before the war began.
“With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL, & MAKE A FORTUNE. IT WOULD BE A ‘GUSHER’ FOR THE WORLD???,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
This comes against the backdrop of a US troop buildup in West Asia. Earlier, Trump said that if Tehran does not reopen the strait, he would target Iran’s power plants, oil wells, desalination plants and Kharg Island, which handles 90 per cent of Tehran’s oil exports.
Iran blocked the Hormuz after the US-Israeli assault on February 28, triggering a global energy crunch. WTI crude was recorded at $111 a barrel on Friday evening compared to $65.35 a barrel before the war started. Brent Crude recorded $109, up from $73 a barrel.
After reported strikes hit a major bridge linking Tehran and Karaj, Trump on Thursday night issued a warning, urging Iran to agree to a deal “before it’s too late.” The US had passed on a 15-point peace proposal to Tehran via Pakistan last week. Tehran has rejected the proposal and put forward a list of demands.
During his address to the nation on Thursday, Trump said that the US was on track to fulfil its military objectives “very shortly,” adding that the military was going to hit them extremely hard. “Over the next two to three weeks, we are going to bring them back to the stone ages where they belong,” he said.
Amid strained relations with NATO, Trump, in an apparent jab at the coalition, urged countries to “take the lead in protecting the oil that they so desperately depend on”.
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Key defence partners in the US-led alliance, including the UK, Germany and France, have distanced themselves from the ongoing operation. Italy and Spain have created logistical hurdles for the American campaign by refusing access to a key airbase and blocking its airspace for military use, respectively.
In the neighbourhood, Gulf countries aligned with the US have come under Iran’s retaliatory attacks since the conflict began. While Tehran has maintained that the American and Israeli establishments in the region are its “legitimate targets,” civilian installations and key energy facilities belonging to the countries have been struck as well.
Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Oman are actively trying to mediate. Trump said that negotiations are taking place, but Iran has denied the claims.
Islamabad hosted high-level delegations from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt this week in an effort to de-escalate, but Tehran said it did not participate in the meetings. Iran also said the demands listed in the US peace proposal are “excessive and unreasonable.”
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