Donald Trump has called on other countries to send ships to help reopen the strait of Hormuz, the critical chokepoint for global oil supplies which Iran has closed to almost all shipping in retaliation for the joint US-Israeli offensive launched two weeks ago.
In the latest flurry of social media posts, Trump wrote on Saturday on Truth Social that “many countries, especially those who are affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending War Ships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe.”
The US president, seemingly in an attempt to bolster domestic and international support for the war, added: “Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others, that are affected by this artificial constraint, will send Ships to the area.”
Almost no maritime traffic is passing through the strait of Hormuz, which usually carries a fifth of global supplies of crude oil and liquefied fossil gas.
On Friday Trump said that US forces “obliterated” military targets in a raid on the island of Kharg in Iran and warned that crucial oil infrastructure there could be next.
“For reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island,” Trump wrote on social media. “However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
The flow of oil and gas from Iran and the Gulf has moved centre stage in the ongoing conflict in recent days.
Kharg lies about 15 miles (25km) off Iran’s coastline and is the main facility for the export of the country’s oil. Iran has effectively closed the narrow strait of Hormuz, sending oil prices surging and raising the prospect of major damage to economies worldwide.
The US president’s comments prompted a defiant response from Iran, where senior military officials reiterated a threat to attack any US-linked oil and energy facilities across the Middle East if its oil infrastructure was hit.
Iran has so far responded to the joint US-Israeli offensive, which is entering its third week, with daily attacks on oil and other infrastructure around the Gulf region, as well as against Israel.
Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for Iran’s joint military command, warned of attacks on “all oil, economic and energy infrastructures belonging to oil companies across the region that have American shares or cooperate with America”.
Iran on Saturday urged the evacuation of three major ports in the United Arab Emirates that Tehran said were “legitimate targets” because the US military used them for attacks. There was no independent confirmation of the claim.
Nine ballistic missiles and 33 drones were fired on Saturday toward the UAE, the defence ministry said. Since war broke out, 1,600 drones, 294 ballistic missiles and 15 cruise missiles have been fired and launched by Iran at the UAE. The attacks have killed six people and wounded 141 others, officials there said.
More than 1,400 people are reported to have been killed in Iran, where residents report relentless bombing. Thirteen have been killed in Israel, and about 20 in total in the Gulf.
In his first public comments, Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, last week vowed to keep the strait of Hormuz shut and urged neighbouring countries to close US bases on their territory or risk being attacked themselves.
No images have been released of Khamenei since an Israeli strike at the start of the war that killed much of his family, including his father and wife. Iran says the new supreme leader was wounded, but an official said on Friday he was not “impaired”.
Trump meanwhile declined to publicly give an end date for the conflict, telling reporters: “It’ll be as long as it’s necessary.”
Analysts have suggested that Trump will seek to end the conflict soon to prevent a deep global economic crisis. The US president’s comments on Saturday marked the first time he has publicly suggested the US may not be able to reopen the strait of Hormuz on its own, and without international support.
Experts told the Guardian earlier this week that military actions directed toward Kharg would lead to a further dramatic increase in oil prices, already surging since the war began on 28 February.
“We may see the $120 (£90) a barrel price we saw on Monday heading to $150 if Kharg were attacked,” said Neil Quilliam of the Chatham House thinktank. “It’s too vital for global energy markets.”
Last week, Trump called the radical Islamist leaders of Iran “deranged scumbags” and said it was an honour to kill them. Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, told a press conference in Washington that Iranian leaders were “desperate and hiding, they’ve gone underground”.
Hegseth also said that Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded and probably disfigured.
On Saturday, multiple alarms sounded in Israel, warning of incoming missiles and drones launched by Iran and Hezbollah, the Tehran-backed militant Islamist movement in Lebanon.
In Lebanon, the humanitarian crisis deepened, with more than 800 people killed and 850,000 displaced, as Israel launched waves of strikes against Hezbollah and warned there would be no letup. Lebanon’s health ministry says 31 paramedics have been killed by Israeli strikes. Israeli officials accused Hezbollah of using civilian ambulances to transport weapons and fighters, without credible evidence.
Concerns that the US may seize Kharg rose when officials in Washington said that 2,500 more marines and the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli had been ordered to the Middle East.
Marine expeditionary units are able to conduct amphibious landings, but they also specialise in bolstering security at embassies, evacuating civilians and disaster relief. The deployment does not necessarily indicate that a ground operation is imminent or will take place.
US forces have suffered casualties, including the deaths of all six crew members aboard a refuelling aircraft that crashed in western Iraq.
