Trump says he got ’gift’ from Iran’s Ghalibaf, hints at Kharg seizure for taking oil

March 30, NDTV - US President Donald Trump has indicated that America could "take the oil in Iran" and seize the Kharg Island-- Tehran's main oil export hub-- as war in the Middle East continued into its fifth week.

Talking to the Financial Times, the American commander-in-chief said his "preference would be to take the oil", comparing the US military operation in Iran with those in Venezuela earlier this year, where Washington gained control of the oil industry following the capture of the Latin American nation's leader, Nicolas 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 told the FT.

He suggested the move could mean taking Kharg Island. “Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don't. We have a lot of options...It would also mean we had to be there [in Kharg Island] for a while.”

The US leader's remarks came as the conflict spilt across the Gulf nations, raising the risk of attacks on energy infrastructure and sending crude oil prices soaring. They also came after a Washington Post report claimed that the Pentagon was preparing for weeks of potential ground conflict by sending around 10,000 troops to Iran. Around 3,500 personnel, including 2,200 Marines, reached there last week, and 2,200 Marines, along with thousands more from the 82nd Airborne Division, are on the way.

But experts have warned that any ground operation on Iran's export hub could leave US troops in great peril and prolong rather than shorten the war. Kharg sits 16 miles (26 km) from Iran's coast in the northern end of the Gulf, about 300 miles (483 km) northwest of the Strait of Hormuz. The island handles 90 per cent of Iran's oil exports, and seizing it would give the United States the ability to severely disrupt Iran's energy trade, placing enormous pressure on Tehran's economy.

But experts have warned that Tehran could opt to lay mines to target shipping, including floating mines deployed from the coast, which would make the region even more hazardous for shipping, which has already been significantly disrupted by the conflict.