By Raul Castillo
President Donald Trump issued a direct warning to Iran on Monday, assuring that his country will respond with devastating force if there are attacks against American vessels in the Strait of Hormuz or the Persian Gulf.
“We will erase the Islamic Republic from the face of the Earth” if these attacks take place, the president stated during a telephone interview with Fox Recordsdata, according to the network’s correspondent in Israel.
Trump also highlighted the military capacity deployed by Washington in the area. “We have more weapons and ammunition of a much higher grade than before,” he said, when referring to the ongoing operation in the strategic maritime passage.
Operation underway and first confrontations
The president’s statements coincide with the beginning of a broad military maneuver to guarantee navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, blocked by Iran in the context of war.
The United States Central Command reported this Monday that it has already facilitated the transit of two merchant ships in the area and that destroyed six Iranian speedboats that tried to prevent the passage.
Trump called this operation “one of the largest military maneuvers ever carried out,” in the midst of an escalation that keeps one of the key routes for international energy trade in tension.
Crossed messages in the middle of negotiations
Despite the hardening of the tone, The president maintained that Iran has shown signs of greater flexibility in talks to end the conflict.
According to Trump, Tehran has become “much more malleable” during recent contacts, although he did not offer details about possible concrete advances.
Monday’s warning adds to previous statements by the president, who had already threatened catastrophic consequences if an agreement is not reached. On April 7, he assured that “an entire civilization” could disappear if Iran did not agree to end the war.
With information from EFE.
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