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| Prez. Donald Trump |
ANKARA, Turkey — President Donald Trump threatened Wednesday to launch new U.S. military strikes against Iran and declared that the interim ceasefire ending the two countries' war was "over," speaking on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, after a fresh exchange of fire triggered by attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest flare-up began Tuesday, when three tankers were struck in the strait, an important corridor for global oil shipments. The United States responded with strikes on Iranian targets it said were connected to the shipping attacks. Iran then retaliated against U.S. military positions; two of the accounts reviewed specified that Bahrain and Kuwait were targeted overnight.
Trump told reporters the U.S. had hit Iran hard the previous night and would "probably hit them hard again tonight." Asked about the status of the truce, he said, "I think it's over." He nonetheless left the door open to further diplomacy, saying U.S. representatives could continue talks, even as he voiced skepticism about their prospects.
Trump also renewed earlier threats to strike Iranian civilian infrastructure, including electric and desalination plants, and raised the possibility of seizing Kharg Island, Iran's main oil-export terminal, noting that U.S. strikes a day earlier had avoided the island's oil facilities.
Iranian officials rejected the U.S. characterization of events. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a lead Iranian negotiator, wrote defiantly:
"The era of bullying and extortion is over. It leads nowhere. We don't fold."
The exchange marked at least the second time in recent weeks that fighting has flared and then been followed by a resumption of ceasefire talks. It remained unclear whether Wednesday's rhetoric would translate into a durable escalation or another temporary spike followed by renewed negotiations.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, addressing the summit, called the U.S. strikes "absolutely necessary" in response to Iranian violations of the ceasefire and said allies should reaffirm that Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons, while also urging that freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz — through which a significant share of global oil traditionally flows — be restored.
Trump described Iran's leadership in harsher terms, calling them "scum" and "sick people" and suggesting they would use a nuclear weapon if they obtained one.
Talks aimed at a permanent settlement — covering the future of the strait and Iran's disputed nuclear program — had been expected to resume this week.