President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to “obliterate” all of Iran’s energy infrastructure – including the key oil hub Kharg Island – if Tehran continues to stall on efforts to strike a deal to end the war.
Airstrikes across the Middle East have continued despite several public overtures to diplomacy and negotiations by the US leader, with Tehran continuing to deny that any direct talks are taking place.
But in a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump claimed that “serious discussions” had been taking place over bringing an end to the month-old conflict and that “great progress” had been made.
“If the Hormuz Strait is not immediately ‘Open for Business,’ we will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!), which we have purposefully not yet ‘touched’,” he wrote in another outburst.
It follows reports of a potential ground invasion of Iran that would mark a significant escalation of the conflict, with officials telling The Wall Street Journal on Sunday that the president is also assessing plans for a military operation to seize uranium from deep inside the country.
“It’s the job of the Pentagon to make preparations in order to give the commander-in-chief maximum optionality. It does not mean the president has made a decision,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement, regarding the reports.
Thousands of US sailors and marines landed in the Middle East over the weekend, according to US Central Command, a move that Tehran said was a sign that Washington was not serious about securing a peace deal.
Oil prices have continued to surge as the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed to commercial shipments.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels entered the fray over the weekend, prompting further concern over global trade disruption after their previous attacks on maritime vessels in the Red Sea passage to the Suez Canal in 2024.
Prime minister Keir Starmer ruled out putting British troops on the ground in Iran and insisted that the UK would not be “dragged” into Mr Trump’s escalating war in the region.
“This is not our war and we’re not going to get drawn into it,” he said, adding the UK will continue to take defensive action and work to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“What we have done is taken defensive action: so we’ve had our pilots up in the air since an hour or two after this war started, defending British lives, British interests and, of course, our allies in the region.
“But we are not going to get dragged into this war.”
The prime minister’s office said it is in discussions with the US at “every level” over its involvement in the war in Iran.
“We will continue to focus, as the prime minister has done, on British national interests, protecting people in the region, doing what we can to protect households from the impact here in the UK, and working with international allies.”
The Pentagon is reported to be awaiting Mr Trump’s approval on ground operations involving up to 10,000 troops, according to The Washington Post.
Secretary of state Marco Rubio has previously denied that ground operations would go ahead and on Monday insisted that the US would achieve its objectives “in a matter of weeks, not months”.
Iran continues to deny that talks have taken place. Tehran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said they had received messages from intermediaries expressing Washington’s willingness to negotiate, but said the proposals were asking too much.
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon have continued after Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared the expansion of a “buffer zone” in operations said to be intended to defeat Hezbollah.
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