Donald Trump has been briefed on military and covert options for Iran amid a brutal crackdown of anti-government protests which has claimed more than 600 lives.
Long-range missiles are an option for US intervention but possible responses also include cyber operations, according to CBS News, citing Department of Defense officials.
US President Trump has announced any country that does business with Iran will face a tariff rate of 25% on trade with the US, as Washington weighs a response to the situation in Iran which is seeing its biggest anti-government protests in years.
“Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Iran, a member of the OPEC oil producing group, has been heavily sanctioned by Washington for years. It exports much of its oil to China, with Turkey, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and India among its other top trading partners.
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"This Order is final and conclusive," Trump said without providing any further detail.
The Chinese embassy in Washington criticised Trump's approach, saying China will take "all necessary measures" to safeguard its interests and opposed "any illicit unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction".
"China's position against the indiscriminate imposition of tariffs is consistent and clear. Tariff wars and trade wars have no winners, and coercion and pressure cannot solve problems," a spokesperson of the Chinese embassy in Washington said on X.
Japan and South Korea, which agreed on trade deals with the US last year, said on Tuesday they are closely monitoring the development.
Human rights groups say more than 600 protesters have been killed in three weeks of anti-government demonstrations in Iran, which has posed one of the gravest tests of clerical rule in the country since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Trump has said the US may meet Iranian officials and that he was in contact with Iran's opposition, while piling pressure on its leaders, including threatening military action.
Tehran said on Monday it was keeping communication channels with Washington open.
While air strikes were one of many alternatives open to Trump, "diplomacy is always the first option for the president," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday.
