President Trump said Monday the U.S. has entered “serious discussions” with the Iranian regime to end the war, but warned he will destroy the Islamic republic’s energy infrastructure if a deal isn’t reached soon.
Mr. Trump’s comments come as the war enters a second month amid signs that he’s considering escalating it. Thousands of troops, including 2,500 Marines and 2,500 sailors, arrived in the region last week.
The president said talks with the Iranian regime are showing “great progress” and predicted a deal will be reached “shortly.” But he also repeated his threat to “obliterate” Iran’s energy infrastructure if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened.
“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!) which we have purposefully not yet ‘touched,’” Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social.
“This will be in retribution for our many soldiers and others, that Iran has butchered and killed over the old Regime’s 47 year “Reign of Terror,’” he added.
Earlier Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said the U.S. demands to end the war are “excessive and unreasonable.”
SEE ALSO: Iran says 15-point U.S. peace plan is ‘excessive,’ confirms no participation in Pakistan talks
Mr. Baghaei said Tehran has had “no direct negotiations with the U.S.” and all discussions have been carried out “through intermediaries about the U.S.’s intention to negotiate,” according to Iranian media outlets.
He also accused Washington of “constantly” shifting its demands, saying he didn’t know “how many people in the United States take the claim of American diplomacy seriously.”
