US President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned Iran that the United States was prepared to launch further military strikes and reimpose a naval blockade if Tehran continued its attacks, while saying he no longer believed negotiations over its nuclear programme were worth pursuing, though he stopped short of ending diplomatic efforts.
Speaking during separate appearances with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and later Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Trump defended the latest US military action against Iranian targets, accused Tehran of violating a pause requested for funeral ceremonies and suggested the current diplomatic framework had effectively collapsed.
Trump said Iran had resumed hostile actions after the United States temporarily paused military operations.
“They said to us, please don’t kill us during the funeral. I said I won’t. We didn’t. In fact, we made it safe for them, actually,” Trump said.
He added that Iran had resumed attacks.
“They started shooting rockets at ships yesterday,” he said.
“So we hit them very hard last night, very hard. I would say 20 to one, 20 times tougher. And I told them, ‘Every time you hit, we hit.'”
Asked whether his remarks signalled a return to full-scale hostilities, Trump did not give a direct answer but warned that more strikes could follow.
“We’ll probably hit ’em hard tonight, I’ll give ’em a little warning,” he said.
Later, Trump said he had instructed the US military to broaden its targeting during the latest operation.
“I told the military to don’t hit the pipes but hit everything else” on Kharg Island, Iran’s principal oil export terminal. He also said Tehran had sought what he described as a “time out” during funeral proceedings before resuming attacks.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said American forces had targeted Iranian military assets involved in threatening commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
“Last night… a lot of small craft that they were trying to harass shipping with, so that was a big part of what we targeted,” Hegseth said.
“Underground facilities where they were storing drones or missiles, coastal defence sites, radar sites, surveillance sites, anything used to harass shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.”
He added: “Tonight, if we need to on your order, Mr President, we will hit even more.”
Trump also suggested Washington could again impose a maritime blockade on Iran.
“We put down the blockade, we may put it back, the blockade, and it’ll only be a blockade for Iran,” he said.
The US President expressed scepticism over the future of diplomacy with Tehran.
“It’s a very interesting question. To me, I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore,” Trump said when asked whether the ceasefire and memorandum of understanding with Iran remained in effect.
“They’re scum. They’re sick people. They’re led by sick people. And they’re vicious, violent people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over.”
Trump also accused Iranian leaders of negotiating in bad faith.
“They’re liars. We make a deal… Everyone’s agreed. No nuclear weapon. We make a deal. They go outside, talk to the press, they say, ‘We never even talked about it.'”
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them.”
At the same time, Trump said his Middle East envoys could continue discussions with Tehran.
“Steve is great, and Jared is great… they’re the right guys. And we’ll see what happens,” Trump said, referring to Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
“I’ll let our wonderful negotiators keep talking if they want, but I don’t see it.”
Earlier, alongside Rutte, Trump described Iran as “the number one state sponsor of terror” and defended the latest military action as part of his administration’s efforts to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
“We’re gonna de-nuke it. We’re not gonna let them, because they’re crazy and they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Backing the US action, Rutte said the strikes were justified after attacks on international shipping.
“I think what you did last night was absolutely necessary. It was a very strong response,” the NATO Secretary General said, adding that degrading Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities was “crucial for Israel, the region, for Europe… for the whole world.”
(IANS)
