Trump Warns of Total Destruction of Iran's Energy Infrastructure if Peace Deal Not Reached 'Shortly'

Washington: US President Donald Trump issued one of his most severe warnings yet against Iran on Monday, threatening to obliterate the Islamic Republic's power plants, oil fields, and critical civilian infrastructure unless a peace agreement is concluded in short order and the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz is reopened to international shipping without delay.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump declared that the United States is in "serious discussions" with what he described as a new and more reasonable Iranian regime to bring an end to American military operations in the country, asserting that "great progress" has been made.

Trump warned that if a deal is not reached shortly and the Strait of Hormuz is not immediately reopened for business, the US would conclude its military campaign by blowing up and completely obliterating Iran's electric generating plants, oil wells, and Kharg Island — and possibly all desalination plants as well — facilities that he said the US military had deliberately spared up to this point.

Kharg Island, located roughly 24 kilometres off Iran's coastline in the northern Persian Gulf, is the nerve centre of Iran's oil export apparatus. Approximately 90 percent of Iran's crude oil exports leave the country through the island, with the bulk of shipments bound for China and other Asian markets. Any strike on the facility would send shockwaves through an already strained global oil market.

In a separate interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, Trump said his preference was to "take the oil" in Iran and raised the possibility of US forces seizing and controlling Kharg Island. "Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don't," he said. "We have a lot of options."

Oil prices rose sharply on Monday following Trump's comments, with Brent crude crossing $116 a barrel — a rise of 3.5 percent — deepening fears that the West Asian conflict may escalate further and worsen an already acute global energy crisis.