US, ready for ground operation in Iran? Iran: We are waiting for you

2026-03-30 18:39:28Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
US, ready for ground operation in Iran? Iran: We are waiting for you
Donald Trump

Shortly after talking about talks between the US and Iran, suggesting that a deal could be imminent, US President Donald Trump changed the narrative and said he could take Iran's oil and seize the island of Kharg, the country's most important fuel hub. 

"To be honest with you, my favorite thing to do is take Iran's oil, but some stupid people in the US ask me why I should do something like that. But they're stupid," the White House chief of staff said in an interview with the Financial Times.

He suggested that this move could mean taking over Kharg Island: "Maybe we take it, maybe we don't. We have many options."

The President's comments come as 3,500 more troops were deployed to the Middle East, amid fears that further escalation could expose US forces to Iranian attacks.

Just a little earlier, speaking to reporters on his Air Force One, President Trump said that the negotiating team from the US and Iran were meeting directly and indirectly, and that the new Iranian leaders had shown themselves to be very reasonable:

"Today we had very good negotiations with Iran, getting a lot of the things that they should have given us a long time ago. We'll see how it works out, but they're very good. They're going very well. Our forces have destroyed a lot of additional targets today. The Navy is gone, the Air Force is gone, we know that. But today we destroyed many, many targets. It was a big day. And we're negotiating with them directly and indirectly."

Pakistan, which is acting as a mediator between Tehran and Washington, said it was preparing to hold serious talks in the coming days, with the aim of ending the month-long war. It is not clear whether the US or Iran have agreed to participate. But Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf suggested that Trump was using the negotiations as cover for planning a ground operation.

He warned that Iran would not accept surrender and that their troops were waiting for American soldiers, on whom, he said, they would rain fire. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump is evaluating the possibility of a military operation to recover an additional 450 kilograms of enriched uranium.

The complex operation would require the deployment of US ground forces into Iran for several days, or longer. Attacks between the parties have continued in recent hours, with Israel reporting waves of bombing from Iran as well as from Yemen. 

As the war shows no signs of abating, the price of oil has risen even further, to $115 per barrel. Experts warn of rising food prices as the export of fertilizers becomes more difficult. 


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