Trump threatens to invade Iran’s Kharg Island ‘to take the oil’ despite Iran’s warnings

US President Donald Trump has threatened to invade Kharg Island in order to take control of Iran’s oil exports.

Trump, in an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, said his “preference” would be for Washington to control Tehran’s oil industry and exports indefinitely, as it did in Venezuela following a military raid in January, which resulted in the kidnapping of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

“To be honest with you, my favorite thing is to take the oil in Iran, but some stupid people back in the US say: ‘Why are you doing that?’ But they are stupid people,” Trump said.

“Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we do not. We have a lot of options,” Trump added, noting that such a move would also mean US forces would have to “be there for a while.”

The US Department of War has been amassing forces in the region, fueling speculation about a potential ground operation.

Officials in Tehran say the country’s armed forces are well prepared to confront American troops.

Attack on Kharg oil facilities will trigger strikes on origin country's energy sites: Armed Forces

Iran

Iran has significantly reinforced Kharg Island’s defenses with special units of its armed forces, mines, air-defense systems and FPV drone units, among others.

The commander of the Iranian Army Ground Force, Brigadier General Ali Jahanshahi said on Thursday that Iran will “incapacitate” the US and the Israeli regime if they wage a ground invasion of the country.

“The Iranian Army forces are standing firm and steadfast on the frontlines of defense and they will incapacitate the enemy,” he added.

The commander also emphasized that every inch of Iran’s territory is protected by vigilant Iranian armed forces, who are monitoring all enemy movements while standing ready for any scenario.

American officials have warned against sending troops to seize Iran’s Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf.

Joe Kent, former director of the National Counterterrorism Center who recently resigned in protest to the ongoing US-Israeli aggression against Iran, warned in remarks to the Washington Post that any sort of occupation of Kharg Island would not be a strategic move, but could be “disastrous and expose US troops to deep danger there and elsewhere in the region.”

Kharg Island is home to Iran’s oil export terminals.

The illegal US-Israeli aggression on Iran began on February 28 with airstrikes that assassinated senior Iranian officials and commanders.

The Iranian armed forces have responded by launching almost daily missile and drone operations targeting locations in the Israeli Occupied Territories as well as US military bases and assets across the region.

They have also blocked the strategic Strait of Hormuz to oil and gas tankers affiliated with the adversaries and those cooperating with them.

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