President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office in this undated photo. In a post to his Truth Social account Monday, Trump threatened to strike Iran’s energy infrastructure if it does not immediately open Strait of Hormuz. (The White House)
The United States will blow up Iran’s power plants and oil infrastructure if it does not immediately open the Strait of Hormuz and agree to a peace deal, President Donald Trump said Monday, threatening to escalate the conflict amid ongoing negotiations.
The president, writing on Truth Social, reported “great progress” in discussions to end military operations in Iran but said that if talks do not continue to go well, the U.S. will take action.
“If for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately ‘Open for Business,’ we will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!),” Trump said.
Operation Epic Fury has entered its second month and has decimated much of Iran’s weapons stockpiles and naval power. But Iran still maintains a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, sharply restricting traffic and allowing only limited oil shipments through. The waterway’s closure has caused oil and gas prices to surge, sparking concerns about wider implications for the global economy.
On Monday, oil prices continued to rise and Asian markets fell, though U.S. stocks were slightly higher in early trading amid fears of the conflict widening.
During the monthlong conflict, Trump has alternated between promising a quick end and vowing to expand it, as the Pentagon surges forces to the region.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that the Pentagon is considering sending up to 10,000 more ground troops to the Middle East, adding to the roughly 5,000 Marines and thousands of paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division headed to the region.
The Okinawa-based 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and U.S. sailors arrived in the Middle East on Friday aboard the USS Tripoli, U.S. Central Command said on X.
It is not clear how such troops would be used. Early Monday, Trump told the Financial Times that his “favorite thing” would be to seize Iran’s oil. He suggested “maybe we take Kharg Island,” which exports the majority of Iran’s crude oil.
Seizing or destroying the island would give the U.S. major leverage in reopening the strait but would require an extensive operation that could involve ground troops. U.S. forces heavily bombed the island this month, Trump said, destroying much of its military infrastructure but sparing the oil pipelines.
The island is about 7 square miles and sits roughly 20 miles off the Iranian coast in the Persian Gulf.
A map showing Kharg Island. The island is about 7 square miles and sits roughly 20 miles off the Iranian coast in the Persian Gulf. (Noga Ami-rav/Stars and Stripes)
Trump has not yet ruled out putting boots on the ground in Iran, a move that would significantly escalate the war and risk more U.S. casualties.
Thirteen service members have been killed since Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28. Six U.S. soldiers were killed in a drone strike in Kuwait, and another was killed in Saudi Arabia. In Iraq, six airmen died when their refueling tanker went down over friendly territory. Another 300 troops have been injured, with the majority having already returned to duty, according to CENTCOM.
Trump had previously said he would give Iran until April 6 to reach an agreement with the U.S. or face strikes on its energy centers. It is unclear if that timeline has changed.
Speaking in a series of interviews with U.S. television networks Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio again insisted that the U.S. was ahead of schedule in accomplishing its goals in Iran, which will be achieved “in a matter of weeks, not months.”
“They (Iranian leaders) are making threats about controlling the Hormuz Strait in perpetuity, creating a tolling system and the like,” Rubio told ABC News. “That’s not going to be allowed to happen. And the president has a number of options available to him, if he so chooses, to prevent that from happening.”
