Donald Trump has told Iran to ‘get their act together’ over the US’ demands to stop its nuclear programme and to ‘get smart soon,’ as oil prices have skyrocketed.
In a bizarre post to Truth Social, the US president shared an apparently AI-generated image of himself wielding a large gun while surrounded by explosions with the caption: ‘No more Mr. Nice Guy!’
It was accompanied with a warning to the mullah regime. Trump said: ‘Iran can’t get their act together. They don’t know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They better get smart soon!’
Meanwhile, the price of Brent Crude – the international benchmark for oil – has risen to $115 per barrel as talks to end the Iran war appear to be at a standstill.
Since the early hours of the morning, oil has risen more than 3%. West Texas Intermediate – the US benchmark – has risen to more than $103.
Earlier, Trump reportedly told his team to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran in order to drain the regime’s finances.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the US president believes that hurting Tehran’s coffers will weaken its leverage in negotiations.
US officials told the newspaper that the blockade is crushing Iran’s economy, as the regime struggles to store the surplus of unsold oil it has.
In a bizarre post to Truth Social, the US president shared an apparently AI-generated image of himself wielding a large gun
The price of Brent Crude – the international benchmark for oil – has risen to $115 per barrel
The Islamic Republic this week submitted a plan that would reportedly see it ease the chokehold and Washington lift its retaliatory blockade on the country’s ports as talks continued, including over its nuclear programme.
While US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran’s proposal was ‘better than what we thought they were going to submit’, he insisted any eventual deal had to be ‘one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon’.
Iranian defence ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik said Washington ‘must abandon its illegal and irrational demands’, adding the United States was ‘no longer in a position to dictate its policy to independent nations’.
Qatar warned of the possibility of a ‘frozen conflict’ if a definitive resolution is not found.
Concerns about the stalled peace push have pushed crude prices higher for more than a week, with Trump’s decision to cancel his envoys’ trip for peace talks in Pakistan last weekend adding to the downbeat mood.
Brent is above the level it hit before the two sides announced a ceasefire at the start of April, while West Texas Intermediate broke $100 Tuesday for the first time in two weeks.
Meanwhile, US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent has claimed Iran will lose an additional $170million (£126million) in oil revenues every day when Kharg Island reaches its maximum storage capacity.
Bessent said US intervention was causing ‘permanent damage to Iran’s oil infrastructure’, including Kharg Island.
The island is responsibly for roughly 90% of Iran’s oil exports.
He also claimed inflation has doubled in Iran, writing on social media: ‘The Treasury Department, through Economic Fury, has targeted Iran’s international shadow banking infrastructure, access to crypto, shadow fleet, weapons procurement networks, funding for terrorist proxies in the region, and independent Chinese ‘teapot’ refineries that support Iran’s oil trade.
‘These actions have disrupted tens of billions of dollars in revenue that would be used to fund terrorism. Under the president’s maximum pressure campaign, Tehran’s inflation has doubled and its currency has rapidly depreciated.
‘Kharg Island, Iran’s primary oil export terminal, is soon nearing storage capacity, which will force the regime to reduce oil production, resulting in an additional approximately $170m per day in lost revenue, and causing permanent damage to Iran’s oil infrastructure.’
