President Donald Trump said Monday that he is open to destroying Iran’s multibillion-dollar oil infrastructure on Kharg Island, a central export hub the United States hit with a wave of strikes last week.
"We attacked Kharg Island and knocked it, literally destroyed everything on the island except for the area where the oil is," Trump told reporters during a press briefing at the White House. "We left the pipes. We didn't want to do that, but we will do that. We can do that on five minutes' notice. It’ll be over."
The president’s stated willingness to hit the oil infrastructure if necessary is a sign that U.S. military operations may expand past Tehran’s missile, drone, and nuclear programs, particularly if the regime continues to impede shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. An attack on the Islamic Republic’s sanctioned oil industry—particularly the facilities on Kharg Island, which process 90 percent of the country’s exports—would almost immediately prevent the regime from shipping millions of barrels of oil to nations like China and deprive it of the cash it needs to stay afloat.
"I guess we did the right thing," Trump said of his decision to withhold fire on Kharg Island’s oil pipelines. "But it may not stay that way, just one simple word, and the pipes will be gone too, [and] it'll take a long time to rebuild that."
Trump made clear that while he welcomes international assistance in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open, "we don't need anybody" to get the job done effectively.
"I don't do a hard sell on them because my attitude is, we don't need anybody," Trump said, referring to his phone calls with world leaders, including French president Emmanuel Macron. "We're the strongest nation in the world. We have the strongest military by far in the world. We don't need them."
Trump’s comments on Monday reflect the words he posted on Truth Social Friday evening after the U.S. attack on Kharg Island.
"Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island. Our Weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the World has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision."
Iranian officials promised harsh repercussions should the United States or Israel target oil infrastructure, but it is increasingly clear that Tehran does not have the military capacity to make good on those threats. Trump during the press conference said that Iranian ballistic missile attacks and drone strikes have decreased by 90 and 95 percent since the launch of Operation Epic Fury.
Trump also said the U.S. operations aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz, the critical commercial shipping lane in the Persian Gulf, remain on pace now that most of Iran’s mine-laying vessels are "at the bottom of the sea."
American forces destroyed more than 30 mine-laying ships in recent days, knocking out Tehran’s entire fleet. While Trump said the Iranians could use other vessels to booby trap the strait, he warned that such activity would be "a big negative for them."
"If they do it, it's a form of suicide," Trump said, adding that he is pressing European and other Western nations to send peacekeeping forces into the region to ensure the shipping lane remains clear.
The United States, he pointed out, "gets less than one percent of our oil from the strait," while nations like China receive up to 90 percent. Allies such as Japan and South Korea import 95 percent and 90 percent of their oil from the strait, respectively, while Europe also relies heavily on imports from the region.
Trump said some personnel are already assembling and making their way towards the region but declined to name the specific nations that have agreed to aid operations in the Strait of Hormuz.
As the 17th day of war operations against Iran continued on Monday, Trump announced that the country’s "air force is gone, the navy is gone," and its anti-aircraft capabilities are "decimated." The military has hit more than 7,000 targets across Iran in both the commercial and military sectors, as well as manufacturing plants where Tehran produces missiles and drones.
"We just hit three of them today, and it's getting very hard for them to manufacture," Trump said, adding that more than 100 Iranian naval vessels were either sunk or destroyed over the last week and a half. "That has to be some kind of a record."
