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Ceasefire declared over
President Donald Trump said the U.S. ceasefire deal with Iran was “over” and warned the United States was planning additional strikes, as oil prices surged more than 4% and U.S. stocks fell Wednesday.
“The price of U.S. crude oil jumped as high as $76 per barrel”
NBC News reported that the price of U.S. crude oil jumped as high as $76 per barrel and closed at $73.52 per barrel, up 4.4%, while Brent crude rose as high as $80 per barrel and closed at $78.02, up 5.2%.
Trump made the remarks on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, saying “I think it’s over,” and later said American forces will “probably hit [Iran] again tonight.”
The NBC News report tied the market move to renewed tensions after the U.S. said Iran struck three commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz and after the U.S. Treasury revoked a sanctions waiver that allowed Iranian oil to be sold into the global market.
Kharg Island and blockade
At the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, Trump vowed to hit Iran “hard” for a second straight night and threatened to seize Kharg Island, warning he could reimpose a naval blockade after the collapse of his peace deal with Tehran.
The New York Post reported Trump said “Maybe we’ll take over Kharg Island,” and described the hub for about 90% of Iran’s oil exports as a target of possible U.S. action.
In a separate report, PBS said Trump told reporters that the U.S. was preparing for another night of strikes against Iran and quoted him: “We'll probably hit them hard again tonight.”
The Time Magazine report said U.S. Central Command announced new strikes against Iran on Wednesday to “further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” and it described NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte calling the U.S. strikes “absolutely necessary.”
Ukraine license and stakes
Trump’s threats and strike planning were paired with a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO summit in Turkey, where PBS said Trump announced the U.S. would allow Patriot air defense missiles to be made overseas.
““We'll give them the right to make Patriots. We'll show them how to do it,””
PBS quoted Trump saying, “We'll give them the right to make Patriots. We'll show them how to do it,” and it described the announcement as a win for Ukraine to counter Russian missile attacks.
Time Magazine said CENTCOM framed the strikes as holding Iran accountable for “recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway,” while also noting that the Memorandum of Understanding laid out terms for an extended 60-day cease-fire.
Time Magazine added that the deadline for the 60-day cease-fire was set to expire in mid-August, and it reported that Kaja Kallas said the exchanges of fire “further complicate already fraught talks to end the war” and that Iran’s attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait were “unacceptable.”