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US President Donald Trump has vowed to keep military assets in the Middle East until a peace deal is reached with Iran and warned of a major escalation of the war if it fails to comply, as oil prices rise due to supply concerns and restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump said on social media that U.S. ships, aircraft and personnel with additional ammunition and weapons would remain in place to destroy, if necessary, “the most destroyed enemy,” but expressed confidence that a permanent deal would be agreed upon and followed.
“If for any reason not, which is highly unlikely, then the ‘Shootin’ Begins,’ bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has seen before,” said Trump, adding that contrary to “fake rhetoric,” Iran had agreed to pursue nuclear weapons and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“For now our great army is loading and resting, looking forward, in fact, to its next conquest. AMERICA IS COMING BACK!”
Although the United States and Iran have declared victory in a five-week war that has killed thousands, their core disputes remain unresolved, with each side clinging to competing demands for a deal that could shape the Middle East for generations.
Israel attacked Lebanon in what it called its heaviest bombing in years, despite the US and Iran agreeing to a ceasefire, prompting threats of retaliation from Tehran.
Trump’s latest post follows a major coordinated military strike by Israel on Wednesday that killed more than 250 people in Lebanon, prompting a warning from Iran’s chief negotiator that Israel’s escalation of the war and Washington’s insistence that Tehran abandon its nuclear ambitions could jeopardize talks to create a permanent peace deal.
“In such a situation, a ceasefire or negotiations were meaningless,” said Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammed Bager Qalibaf, in a statement on Wednesday.
Oil prices rose on Thursday as investors worried about the fragility of the deal and increased risks to the country’s supply in the Middle East, and doubts that restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz will ease soon.
Brent crude futures rose 2.07 percent, at $96.71 US a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.75 percent, at $97.01 US a barrel, a day after both benchmarks fell sharply on the ceasefire announcement.
Israel’s airstrikes on Wednesday raised questions about regional peace efforts, with conflicting messages about the value of a cease-fire and widely divergent plans for peace talks that begin Saturday in Pakistan.
(Mohamed Azakir/Reuters)
The United States and Israel said Lebanon was not included in the deal, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the cessation of hostilities in Lebanon was an important condition of Tehran’s agreement with Washington.
Iran-backed Hezbollah said it fired rockets early Thursday at the small town of Manara, citing what it described as a violation of the Israeli ceasefire agreement and warning of more until an end to “Israeli-American violence.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry condemned Israel’s action on Thursday, saying it “undermines international efforts to create peace and stability.”
French President Emmanuel Macron earlier said Lebanon “must be fully integrated” by the ceasefire.
Iran’s delegation to the talks was supposed to arrive in Islamabad on Thursday night.
Iran wants tolls
There has been little sign that the Strait of Hormuz has been opened in any meaningful way since the deal was agreed, with Iran still asserting that it controls the vital artery, the route for a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas, and the pressure to pay for safe passage.
Tehran’s new ability to cut off the Gulf’s energy supply by holding onto the road, despite decades of heavy US military investment in the region, shows that the conflict is already changing the dynamics of the Gulf.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards navy posted a map on Thursday showing alternative navigation routes in the Strait of Hormuz to help ships avoid sea mines, the official Iranian news agency ISNA said.
