Trump’s new threat in a social media post and earlier comments in an interview with the Financial Times that suggested US troops could seize the Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub highlighted a frequent tactic. On the one hand, he has repeatedly said that talks with Iran are going well — although Tehran denies negotiating directly. In the Financial Times interview, Trump said that his preference would be to “take the oil in Iran” — a move that would require seizing Kharg Island, the terminal through which nearly all of Iran’s oil exports pass. “Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don’t,” he added. Iran has threatened to launch its own ground invasion of Gulf Arab countries and mine the Persian Gulf if US troops set foot on its territory.

Source: Taipei Times March 30, 2026 16:31 UTC