United States President Donald Trump has warned of possible further American action against a small island off the coast of Iran, home to a major oil terminal that is considered the country’s economic lifeline.
In an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, Trump said he wants to “take” Iran’s oil and was considering seizing Kharg Island.
But he added an operation “would mean we had to be there (in Kharg Island) for a while.”
On March 13, Trump said that US forces had “totally obliterated” every military target on the island, but that the US military had held off targeting its oil infrastructure.
Earlier this month, US news outlet Axios, quoting four sources with knowledge of the issue, said that the administration was considering plans to occupy or blockade the island to pressure Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, located south of Iran’s coast.
There has been speculation for some time about whether US forces would at some point attempt to take over Kharg Island.
Its seizure would not only choke off Iran’s oil exports but could also provide a platform from which to carry out attacks against the mainland.
In the interview with the Financial Times, Trump said: “Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don’t. We have a lot of options.”
He added: “It would also mean we had to be there (in Kharg Island) for a while… I don’t think they have any defence. We could take it very easily.”
Sources told the BBC’s US partner CBS News that Pentagon officials have made detailed preparations to deploy ground forces into Iran.
Adding to that speculation, US Central Command said on Saturday that a further 3,500 US sailors and marines arrived in the Middle East as part of a unit led by the warship USS Tripoli.
Both the Pentagon and the White House have declined to offer comments on specific troop deployments or potential plans, but have repeatedly made clear that the option is available.
Taking the island would effectively cut off the IRGC’s economic lifeline, affecting its ability to wage war, says Mikey Kay, a security analyst from the BBC’s Security Brief.
Aaron Maclean, host of the School of War podcast and a CBS national security analyst, said the US thinking was likely that the island could be seized and “used as leverage” to compel the Iranians to keep the strait open.
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Iranian member of Parliament (Majlis), Alaeddin Boroujerdi, has said that a new parliamentary plan concerning the Strait of Hormuz will be “approved as soon as possible”.
Under the proposed “new system,” no passage would be allowed “without the permission” of Iran, Boroujerdi said.
He also said that Iran is looking to levy transit tolls on the strait.
“Given that maintaining security and providing services to vessels passing through involve costs, a framework must be established for collecting transit tolls through the strait,” he said.
He also said that “the time has come” for Iran to withdraw from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), asserting that it has lost its “relevance” following attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities by Israel and the US.
