President Donald Trump reaffirmed his recent statements about attacking Oman amid the U.S.’s efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, telling reporters that the U.S. would handle the ally “very easily.”
“I don’t think they behaved very well, but we’d handle them very easily,” President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about statements he gave to FOX News earlier.
Trump Threatens To Bomb Oman During Phone Interview
According to the outlet, President Trump told Foreign Correspondent Trey Yingst, “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the s**t out of them,” when asked about the parallel talks about control over the maritime chokepoint between Iran and Oman.
The President’s affirmation comes after the U.S.’s 60-day ceasefire with the Islamic Republic reached its deadline with no official talks or agreement formally established.
President Trump’s statements drew scrutiny from some FOX News correspondents, who questioned why the commander-in-chief has drawn hostility towards a strategic partner.
Iran Transitions To The Offensive Amid Ceasefire Deadline
Amid the U.S. and Iran’s Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) expiration, the Islamic Republic has decided to transition its policy from defensive to “fully offensive,” according to a senior Iranian official.
“Iranian entities must be prepared to escalate tensions in the Strait of Hormuz and wider region, as Iran will be ready to make decisions and take action on difficult decisions,” the official asserted.
The official also affirmed that Iran would perform a “timely and precise” military offensive to disrupt the U.S.’s current naval blockade if diplomatic efforts fail.
“Within the short period of a few weeks set by Iran, all the agreement’s provisions must be implemented by the U.S. This is a precondition for further negotiations with the U.S.,” the Iranian official stated, adding that mediators would inform the U.S. and regional states of its newly imposed deadline.
Back-And-Forth Over Ownership Of The Strait
One of the contentious points regarding negotiations involves control over the waterway.
President Trump has recently stated that the Strait would be under the control of the U.S., even stating that it would be turned into a U.S. territory.
Iran, however, has strongly asserted that it would retain control of the Strait, adding that traversing vessels must pay a toll to ensure safe navigation.
