President Donald Trump has threatened to escalate the war by “blowing up and completely obliterating” Iran’s electric generating plants, oil wells, and its key oil terminal, Kharg Island.
“Great progress” has been made in talks to end the war, Trump said Monday morning, but he warned of grave action ahead if a “deal is not shortly reached” and if the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway “is not immediately open for business.”
Trump said the U.S. military action, if carried out, would be “in retribution for our many soldiers, and others, that Iran has butchered and killed over the old regime’s 47-year reign of terror.”
The U.S. President’s threat comes as oil continues to be used as a geopolitical bargaining chip in the Iran war which is in its 31st day.
Since the first U.S.-Israeli strikes killed former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Feb. 28, Iran has retaliated by targeting oil refineries and other key production infrastructure across the Gulf region. But most pivotal of all has been Iran’s effective closing of the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman through which around a fifth of global oil production flows.
Oil and gas prices have surged as a result of the key transit route coming to a halt, with the impact being felt across the globe. The price of brent crude oil hit $115 per barrel Monday morning. Prior to the Iran war, the price sat at around $72 per barrel. U.S. gas stations have been impacted, with gasoline prices now at a national average of $3.99 per gallon.
Trump’s threat Monday morning to “obliterate” Kharg Island if a deal is not reached comes after he has referenced seizing the key oil terminal on a number of occasions.
A takeover of the island would require ground troops, and would likely dramatically escalate the war, as Iran has previously warned that any invasion of its islands would “shatter all restraint” and result in bloodshed.
Here’s a breakdown of what Trump has…
