Iran Warns No Energy Infrastructure Will Be Safe If It Can't Sell Oil
Iran threatened to attack energy infrastructure across the Middle East if its security isn't guaranteed as it ratcheted up its rhetoric while waiting for the United States to officially respond to a plan Tehran says would reopen the Strait of Hormuz. While air attacks by both sides have subsided recently, ships in the key waterway continue to be targeted by Iran, which claims control over the…
Iran has warned that no energy infrastructure will remain safe if its security is not guaranteed, as it escalates its rhetoric in anticipation of the United States' response to a proposal aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz. While recent air attacks have diminished, ships in the vital waterway continue to face threats from Iran, which asserts control over the strait despite US claims of its openness.
Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, stated in a video on September 29 that "in a region where we cannot sell oil, no one else will sell oil either; or if our security is not guaranteed, no infrastructure will remain safe."
The proposal for reopening the strait, which once facilitated about one-fifth of the world's gas and oil supply, was offered by Iran last week. However, US President Donald Trump has dismissed the plan, insisting on lifting the naval blockade of ships bound for Iran, removing sanctions on oil sales, and reinstating a regional cease-fire.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, in a letter to American voters, blamed the US for initiating the war on February 28 and claimed more than 3,600 Iranians, mostly civilians, were killed during the conflict. The US, in turn, reports losing 18 of its troops. The letter also reiterated Iran's claim that its nuclear program is solely for civilian purposes.
RFE/RL has sought comment from the US State Department on the letter but has not received a prompt response.
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