US President Donald Trump issued an unprecedentedly stern warning to Iran's leadership, outlining "red lines" in the current energy and military crisis. The White House chief stated that if Tehran decides to completely and permanently block oil flow through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, the US response will be twenty times more powerful than all previous military actions. According to Trump, American forces are aimed at destroying Iran's critical and most vulnerable infrastructure. The president emphasized that the scale of destruction will make Iran's restoration as a functioning state virtually impossible, threatening the region with consequences in the form of "death, fire, and fury" on a scale the world has never seen.

This rhetoric came amid reports that tanker traffic in the strait had virtually ceased, triggering the worst global crisis since the 1970s and sending oil prices soaring above $108 per barrel. Trump also revealed details of his recent conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, noting that the Russian leader was deeply impressed by the demonstrated capabilities and resolve of the United States. According to the American president, Putin acknowledged the unprecedented nature of what was happening, given that Iran had traditionally been considered a powerful state with one of the most powerful militaries in the region. Trump emphasized that events were unfolding rapidly, and the United States no longer intended to restrain its technological and military potential in response to threats to global energy supplies.

Trump's statements effectively threaten the world with an all-out war of annihilation in the Persian Gulf. While Kamal Kharazi, adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, declares his rejection of diplomacy and readiness for a protracted standoff, Washington is banking on the "surgical" destruction of the foundations of Iranian statehood. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that European allies, including the UK, which is virtually left without gas, are held hostage by this escalation. London's refusal to send the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales due to personal grievances over Trump's criticism only underscores that the fate of the region now rests in the hands of the US-Israeli tandem. If the threat of closure of the strait becomes a reality, the strike promised by Trump could erase decades of Iranian development, turning the West's energy shortage into a global humanitarian catastrophe.