President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he may order strikes against Iranian infrastructure because Tehran is taking too long to reach a deal to end the war.
Fox News reporter Trey Yingst said he spoke to Trump, who told him he could "keep going" after ordering strikes against Tehran over the downing of a U.S. helicopter close to the Strait of Hormuz.
The journalist went on to say Trump told him Tehran "had a chance to sign a deal and survive" and is "getting close to ordering new strikes against Iranian power plants and bridges" because he believes the "Iranians are tapping the United States along."
The reported remarks follow a social media post in which Trump anticipated further escalation because Iran "has taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them."
Trump made the claim in a social media post in which he also said Tehran's military is a "complete and total mess" and will now have to "pay the price."
"Much of it, like their Navy and Air Force, doesn't even exist anymore - They have been completely defeated. Iran is all talk and no action. The Bully of the Middle East is DEAD!!!" he added.
The threat follows renewed escalation between the countries that began after the downing of a U.S. helicopter. Trump said on Tuesday that "he United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack," and the U.S. Central Command later launched three rounds of strikes against Iranian air defense and radar systems near the Strait of Hormuz.
"The operation was a proportional response to recent attacks on U.S. forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters," CENTCOM said after.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had responded to Trump, saying that "foreign forces in proximity to our territory are at constant risk" and the country prefers diplomacy but "speaks other languages too."
"Leave our region if you want to be safe. History of the Persian Gulf has many chapters on dire fates of intruding outsiders," he added.
Iran retaliated by targeting bases in Jordan and Kuwait. A spokesperson for Bahrain's king said the country repelled Iranian attacks. A U.S. official told Axios that Tehran fired at least four ballistic missiles and several drones.
