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Ceasefire declared over
The U.S. carried out another round of strikes on Iran on Wednesday, hours after President Donald Trump said that recent Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz signaled the end of the ceasefire.
U.S. Central Command said the strikes were intended to “further degrade” Iran’s ability “to threaten freedom of navigation” in the strait, and Iranian state media reported explosions including in Bandar Abbas, Sirik, and Bushehr.
Trump said the U.S. would “probably hit them hard again tonight” and later added that the latest back-and-forth fighting would not result in “long-term” military action.
The exchange followed a day after the U.S. military hit a variety of military sites and port facilities after Iran targeted several merchant vessels off the coast of Oman, and it came as oil prices shot up after Trump’s comments.
Markets and allies react
Oil prices surged more than 4% Wednesday after Trump said the U.S. ceasefire deal with Iran was “over” and the United States was planning additional strikes, with U.S. stocks falling as the S&P 500 closed down 0.3% and the Dow Industrial Average fell 577 points.
NBC News reported Trump said on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, “I think it’s over,” and that he considered negotiations a “waste of time.”
The Guardian reported Trump told reporters at the NATO summit in Turkey that his negotiators “can talk, but I think they’re wasting their time … They’re a bunch of liars,” and it also described the U.S. strikes as intended to “further degrade” Iran’s ability “to threaten freedom of navigation” in the strait.
The Guardian further said the U.S. Treasury revoked a temporary sanctions waiver for Tehran to export oil, and Iran responded with attacks on U.S. military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait.
What’s at stake next
The renewed exchange of fire raised fears that the war in Iran could reignite, and the AP said Trump fueled those concerns by saying the interim agreement to pause fighting was “over,” while allowing negotiations to continue.
AP reported that a renewed conflict could engulf the wider Middle East and would likely again halt energy shipments through the strait that are crucial to the global economy, while NBC News said Trump floated reimposing the American naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Guardian said the memorandum was supposed to trigger at least 60 days of phased negotiations after the MoU signed last month, and it described the proposed end-state as including a permanent end to hostilities and a ceasefire in Lebanon.
In the same account, the Guardian said Tehran wants ships use a northern passage and claims a U.S.-sponsored southern route close to the Omani coast breaches a clause in the MoU that left Iran in control, while requiring demining of the strait and restoration of shipping traffic to pre-war levels within 30 days.
