U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants to seize Iran’s oil and suggested the United States could take Kharg Island, a key hub for Iran’s oil exports.
Talks with Iran
Trump made the remarks in an interview with The Financial Times on March 29. He said the U.S. is making progress in talks with Iran, describing them as both direct and indirect. According to Trump, Tehran is partially reopening the Strait of Hormuz. He did not provide details, and Iranian officials deny his claims. Tehran says the U.S. presented a 15-point peace plan, which Iran rejected.
Trump also said a regime change in Iran has already happened. He claimed this followed the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other senior officials at the start of the military operation.
“The people we’re dealing with are a totally different group of people… [They] are very professional,” Trump said.
He added that Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, may have been seriously injured or could be dead. Iranian authorities insist he is alive, but Trump said there has been no news about him.
Trump set a deadline for Iran to agree to end the war. Tehran has until April 6 to make a decision. If it refuses, Trump threatened strikes on Iranian power plants. Washington’s main demand is to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had blocked. Tehran recently said it would allow ships from “non-hostile” countries to pass. Trump described this as progress.
Iran’s oil
Trump also said he would like to “take” Iran’s oil. He compared the idea to his plans for Venezuela, where he aims to control the oil sector for an indefinite period. Earlier in January, U.S. forces detained Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
“To be honest with you, my favourite thing is to take the oil in Iran but some stupid people back in the US say: ‘why are you doing that?’ But they’re stupid people,” Trump said.
He also suggested he may try to seize Kharg Island, which handles a large share of Iran’s oil exports.
“I don’t think they have any defence. We could take it very easily,” he said.
Earlier, The Ukrainian Review reported that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian publicly thanked Vladimir Putin and Russia for their support, saying their actions “inspire” Iran in the war.
