Larijani’s intervention came after Trump publicly warned that if Iran did anything to stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, the United States would hit back “TWENTY TIMES HARDER” than it already had. Reuters reported on Tuesday that the Pentagon was already considering options to escort ships through the strait, while U.S. forces were striking Iranian mine-laying vessels and storage facilities as Washington accused Tehran of threatening one of the most important energy chokepoints in the world. U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the day would mark the most intense strikes inside Iran so far, and repeated that “death, fire, and fury” would rain down if Iran shut the waterway.
The Strait of Hormuz is not a side issue in this crisis. Roughly a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade normally passes through the narrow channel off Iran’s coast, making any threat to shipping there a matter of immediate international concern. Reuters said the war had already effectively halted shipments through the route, while reporting from other outlets cited oil prices jumping sharply as markets reacted to the risk of a prolonged disruption. The economic stakes have therefore become entwined with the military and political confrontation, turning Trump’s threat and Larijani’s reply into more than just a war of words.
The exchange also comes against a long and violent backdrop. Trump has been a recurring target of alleged Iranian plots since his first term, when he ordered the 2020 U.S. strike that killed Qassem Soleimani, the powerful commander of Iran’s Quds Force. That killing was hailed by Trump’s supporters as a decisive blow against a key architect of Iranian regional operations, but it also triggered years of threats and revenge rhetoric from Tehran and from figures aligned with the Islamic Republic. Reuters reported in 2024 that U.S. authorities had received intelligence about an Iranian plot to assassinate Trump, prompting increased security measures.
