Overnight clashes in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz have angered US President Donald Trump, who is in Ankara for a NATO summit.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) carried out powerful strikes overnight, it said in a statement. The goal was to “impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway.”
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte supported Trump’s decision to carry out the strikes, calling them “absolutely necessary.”
CENTCOM said it had struck 80 targets and completed the strikes by the morning of July 8. “The US strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s demonstrated aggression was unwarranted, dangerous, and a clear violation of the ceasefire.”
Status of US-Iran truce now uncertain
However, it now remains unclear whether the US will go back to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Iran. Iran has also claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks in the Gulf.
The US-Iran truce is now uncertain, CNN notes. Trump is hinting that the MoU is now over. It was supposed to stretch into next month.
The United States said on July 8 that it was reinstating sanctions on Iranian oil sales, after the regime attacks on tankers transiting the Strait. Iran had carried out several attacks from July 6-7, including targeting a Qatari LNG tanker. Qatar is outraged.
The US Treasury last month authorized Iranian oil sales until August 21 “as part of the fragile agreement between Tehran and Washington,” Reuters noted.
The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry “expressed the State of Kuwait’s strong condemnation and denunciation of the heinous Iranian attacks that targeted the sisterly Kingdom of Bahrain today, which represent a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and a direct threat to its security, stability, and the safety of its citizens and residents on its territory,” Kuwait’s al-Jarida said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who is also its foreign minister, received a phone call from Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Doha News noted that “the two sides discussed the latest diplomatic developments related to ongoing negotiations. The call came at a sensitive moment in regional diplomacy, with tensions between Iran and the United States remaining high, periodic setbacks in mediation efforts, and persistent concerns over maritime security.”
Qatar’s prime minister reaffirmed Qatar’s full support “for mediation efforts aimed at resolving the crisis by peaceful means, stressing the need for all parties to engage in order to create conditions for progress in negotiations and reduce the risk of renewed escalation.”
Trump's statement indicates that collapse of MoU may be near
Al-Ain News in the UAE said that Trump’s recent statement “is the clearest indication yet that the agreement Trump reached with Iran is almost collapsing.” The American president now believes that the Iranians are not negotiating in good faith.
They are viewed now as “dishonest” players, and Trump is worried that the US has been wasting its time in the talks. This isn’t the first time Trump has slammed Iran and its leadership. It’s possible that the threats are designed to get Iran to stop its provocations.
In the UAE, Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the president of the UAE, said that the continued Iranian attacks show Tehran’s inability to commit to turning the page on the war.
Gargash added, “Iranian attacks on Qatari and Saudi commercial tankers in the Strait of Hormuz – and the repeated aggression against the sisterly countries of Bahrain and Kuwait – are a clear indication that Tehran is still unable to comply with the requirements of de-escalation and turning the page on war,” Al-Ain news in the UAE reported.
In a strong message, he wrote that “the Gulf Arab states cannot remain a target for Iran’s wavering between the logic of escalation and the path of rationality, stability, and peace.”
This is an important statement. The Gulf is beginning to realize that Iran won’t step back from its demands to basically control the Strait of Hormuz and dictate policy in the Gulf. This means that countries in the Gulf will want a solution that doesn’t end with attacks on ships every week and a continuing cycle of escalation and talks between Iran and the US.