Trump Says He Can’t End Iran Blockade Without a Deal – ‘Unless We Blow Up The Rest Of Their Country’

AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he could not end the U.S. naval blockade of Iran without a deal, “unless we blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included.”

The president wrote on Truth Social that Iran did not want their crucial oil passway, the Strait of Hormuz, to be closed, claiming the country only shut the Strait to “save face” after the U.S. blockaded it.

He wrote:

Iran doesn’t want the Strait of Hormuz closed, they want it open so they can make $500 Million Dollars a day (which is, therefore, what they are losing if it is closed!). They only say they want it closed because I have it totally BLOCKADED (CLOSED!), so they merely want to “save face.” People approached me four days ago, saying, “Sir, Iran wants to open up the Strait, immediately.” But if we do that, there can never be a Deal with Iran, unless we blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included! President DONALD J. TRUMP

Trump’s post came hours after his announcement that he would be extending the two-week ceasefire with the country, before it was set to expire later on Tuesday.

Iran closed the Strait at the start of the conflict, long before the U.S. blockade, which Trump instituted after unsuccessful peace negotiations in Pakistan last weekend.

The president announced last week that the Strait of Hormuz had reopened due to the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon, claiming the U.S. blockade of the Strait would continue. The following day, Iran fired on an oil tanker passing through the Strait, leading Trump to announce Sunday that the U.S. Navy blew “a hole” in an Iranian ship that tried to evade the U.S. blockade.

Vice President JD Vance was set to fly to Pakistan on Tuesday to begin another round of negotiations with Iran, but his flight was put on hold, with Iran claiming it had not yet agreed to talks.

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