Donald Trump said the Iran peace deal was effectively finished after what he called the country’s “scum” regime opened fire on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
“To me, I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore,” Trump told attendees during an event at the NATO summit in Turkey on Wednesday.
“They’re scum, they’re sick people, they’re led by sick people, and they’re vicious, violent people.”
US Central Command said American forces hit more than 80 targets in what it described as “punishment” after three tankers were fired upon by the regime. Iran retaliated with strikes aimed at Bahrain and Kuwait.
The escalating crisis sent oil markets sharply higher overnight, with global benchmark Brent crude climbing to $78.39 a barrel, its strongest level since June 19.
Despite his hardline comments, Trump said members of his negotiating team still believed there might be a way to rescue a peace agreement.
“I’ll speak to our negotiators. They want to negotiate, they’re good people… but they have to come back to me,” the President said.
On Iran, however, Trump added: “As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them.”
Trump fumed that the ceasefire deal with Iran is ‘over’ and that he’s tired of dealing with Iran’s ‘sick’ leadership on Wednesday
A screen grab from a video showing the latest US strikes on Iran
CENTCOM said on Wednesday: ‘Forces completed a new round of offensive strikes against Iran, July 7, hitting over 80 targets with precision munitions as an immediate response to Iran’s latest attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
‘US forces struck Iranian air defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities, and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats in and near the strait.’
The US identified the targeted vessels as: Marshall Islands-flagged M/T Al Rekayyat, Saudi Arabia-flagged M/T Wedyan, and Liberian-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity.
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‘As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them. They’re liars,’ Trump said. ‘They’re cuckoo.’
The President said that he initially believed Iran would be peaceful during this week as the country is taking six days to mourn the death of their late leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed by joint US-Israeli strikes on February 28.
‘We said, ‘Go and do your funeral stuff,’ and instead of that, they start shooting rockets at ships,’ Trump remarked.
‘Can you imagine they start shooting bombs, actually missiles at ships yesterday, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, couple of others,’ he added/
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who was sitting next to Trump as he went off on Iran’s leadership, offered support for the latest round of strikes.
The coffins of family members of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on February 28 during Israeli and US airstrikes on Iran, are placed inside the shrine of Imam Abbas during funeral ceremonies in Karbala
Mourners carry one of the coffins of family members of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
‘I think what you did last night was absolutely necessary,’ Rutte told Trump. ‘It was a very strong response.’
Rutte has been working to mend the relationship between the White House and NATO following Trump’s repeated remarks about how the military alliance did not support US military forces in the early days of the war.
The NATO leader told Trump that there were only ‘isolated cases’ of allied nations not wanting to offer their support to the US.
‘I would say these are isolated cases,’ Rutte said, adding that 5,000 planes took off from European airports in support of Operation Epic Fury.’
‘Europe [is] one big platform of power projection for the United States,’ Rutte added.
