Washington, United States. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the next few days in the war against Iran would be decisive and warned Tehran the conflict would intensify if it did not make a deal. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to target U.S. companies in the region in retaliation for attacks on Iran.
U.S. warnings and ongoing talks
Hegseth said President Donald Trump was willing to make a deal and that talks were ongoing and gaining strength, but added the United States was prepared to continue the war if Iran did not comply. Speaking in Washington, Hegseth said the United States had “more and more options” while Iran had fewer, and said the coming days would be decisive.
Iran threats and attacks on shipping
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they would target U.S. companies in the region from Wednesday, listing 18 groups including Microsoft, Google, Apple, Intel, IBM, Tesla and Boeing. Iran earlier set ablaze a fully loaded oil tanker off Dubai, its latest attack on merchant vessels in the Gulf or in the Strait of Hormuz since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28.
Trump comments on the strait and allies
Trump threatened on Monday to obliterate Iran’s energy plants if it does not agree to a peace deal and open the strait, a vital waterway for global oil shipments that has effectively been blocked by Iran. On Tuesday, Trump criticised countries that have not helped in the war, including France and Britain, saying they should find “some delayed courage” to take the strait and get their own oil. Sources told Reuters France had not allowed its airspace to be used to transport U.S. weapons for use in the war.
Regional impact and oil market response
The month-long conflict has spread across the region, killing thousands, disrupting energy supplies and threatening to send the global economy into a tailspin. Crude oil prices briefly spiked again after the attack on the tanker, which can carry around 2 million barrels of oil worth more than $200 million at current prices.
Domestic political and economic pressure
Higher oil and fuel prices have started to weigh on U.S. household finances and are a political headache for Trump and his Republican Party before November midterm elections.
How do you expect the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz to affect oil prices in the coming weeks?
