<\/p>\n
The US and Iran traded threats of escalation on Wednesday as the weeks-long stalemate in the Middle East dragged on without resolution.<\/p>\n
President Donald Trump told reporters the US was in the \u201cfinal stages\u201d with Iran, sparking investor hopes that a deal was close. Treasuries surged and oil dropped sharply.<\/p>\n
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Trump threatens Iran with \u2018big hit\u2019 if there\u2019s no deal soon
Cooperation, competition and conflict<\/p>\n
But the president also reiterated a pledge to restart attacks in the coming days if he deems it necessary. \u201cWe\u2019ll either have a deal or we\u2019re going to do some things that are a little bit nasty,\u201d he said. \u201cBut hopefully that won\u2019t happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
The US has insisted Iran surrender any plans for nuclear enrichment and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial traffic \u2013 demands Tehran is refusing. Iran wants the US to end a blockade of its ports first.<\/p>\n
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted the country was not on the brink of giving in. \u201cForcing Iran to surrender through coercion is nothing but an illusion,\u201d he\u00a0posted\u00a0on X.<\/p>\n
Trump later repeated the tight timeline he has set, and stretched, several times since the start of the conflict. \u201cBelieve me, if we don\u2019t get the right answers, it goes very quickly,\u201d Trump said after a speech at the Coast Guard Academy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all ready to go. We have to get the right answers.\u201d<\/p>\n
A ship remains anchored in the Strait of Hormuz near Larak Island, Iran, on 16 May. Image: Majid Saeedi\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Earlier, Iran warned it would retaliate beyond the Middle East if the US or Israel renews strikes, although it was unclear if Tehran had the capability to do so.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf aggression against Iran is repeated, the regional war that had been promised will this time extend beyond the region,\u201d the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.<\/p>\n
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The IRGC, which has gained even more influence over Iranian decision-making since the war erupted in late February, vowed \u201ccrushing blows in places you do not expect.\u201d<\/p>\n
Iran fired drones and missiles at several countries when the US and Israel began the war. In addition to Israel and Gulf Arab states, targets included Turkey and Cyprus.<\/p>\n
While Tehran\u2019s military was battered by airstrikes until a truce was agreed on 8 April, it still has the ability to attack countries in the region.<\/p>\n
Previously, Trump said he had held off on renewed attacks at the request of regional allies.<\/p>\n
Oil prices plunged more than 5% with Brent crude trading near $105 a barrel as traders unwound some risk premium after Trump\u2019s remarks raised investor expectations that energy flows through the critical Strait of Hormuz may resume.<\/p>\n
US stocks are set to snap a three-day losing streak on Wednesday as oil prices eased, amid the hopes for an end of the conflict, and ahead of results from Nvidia Corp.<\/p>\n
Still, key industry players warned oil flows from the Middle East won\u2019t fully recover until well into 2027, even if the Iran conflict ends immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter almost three months of war, Trump\u2019s aims are seemingly far from being achieved, and Iran is emerging bruised but emboldened with newfound global leverage,\u201d Bloomberg Economics analysts Dina Esfandiary, Becca Wasser and Ziad Daoud said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe risk of further escalation remains as both sides remain too far apart for a deal \u2013 but further fighting is unlikely to result in a strategic breakthrough.\u201d<\/p>\n
Axios reported Trump held a tense call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday in which Trump outlined US plans for a formal end to the conflict before final negotiations are completed.<\/p>\n
Although Israel has signalled it wants another round of attacks on the Islamic Republic at some stage, Trump told reporters Wednesday Netanyahu would \u201cdo whatever I want him to do\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Trump denied a Tasnim report that the US was offering oil sanctions relief as part of peace negotiations.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I\u2019m not doing any relief until they sign an agreement. When they sign an agreement, we can get that place built up again, and have something that\u2019s really a good country for the people, but no, we haven\u2019t offered anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Iran has so far refused Trump\u2019s insistence it relinquish\u00a0highly-enriched uranium\u00a0or agree to never again process it.<\/p>\n
The two sides are also in a standoff over the status of the Strait of Hormuz. The US military on Wednesday\u00a0boarded and later released\u00a0an Iranian-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman.<\/p>\n
The vessel, M\/T Celestial Sea, was \u201csuspected of attempting to violate the US blockade by transiting toward an Iranian port,\u201d US Central Command said. Following a search of the vessel, American forces released it and directed the crew to alter course.<\/p>\n
Iran claimed that 26 ships \u2013 tankers, container vessels and others \u2013 passed through Hormuz in the last day \u201cwith the coordination of and security provided by the IRGC Navy.\u201d<\/p>\n
That would be an unusually high number for recent weeks, though still far below pre-war levels of traffic. The claim underscores Iran\u2019s desire to assert control over traffic there.<\/p>\n
The IRGC, which posted a\u00a0statement on X, didn\u2019t specify where the vessels were headed from, which countries they were going to, or offer evidence for the claim.<\/p>\n
Earlier, Iranian media said that South Korea had followed China by coordinating with the IRGC to get its ships through the strait safely.<\/p>\n
\u00a9\u00a02026\u00a0Bloomberg<\/p>\n
#Iran #threatens #retaliate #Middle #East #attacks<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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