When Iran reportedly asked for a ceasefire, President Donald Trump said America will continue “blasting Iran into oblivion” until it opens the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian requested a ceasefire in the conflict with the United States, Trump posted on Truth Social the morning of April 1. However, Trump noted that until Iran opens the Strait of Hormuz on its southern border – a global choke point for oil – America will continue its bombing.
This comes as Trump prepares to address the nation about the Iran conflict at 9 p.m. ET on April 1.
Pezeshkian took office in 2024, according to Britannica. He holds more moderate positions than his predecessor, supporting social reforms and a nuclear agreement with the West. Still, after America killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei took office with a potentially more radical agenda – though it is now unclear whether he is still alive.
America and Israel launched large-scale military strikes against Iran on February 28, as The Dallas Express reported. Officials initially believed the conflict would conclude in a matter of weeks.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt suggested on March 25 that American forces had nearly reached their goals, as The Dallas Express reported. She highlighted 9,000 U.S. strikes, a 90% decrease in Iranian missile and drone attacks, and the destruction of 140 Iranian naval vessels – “the largest elimination of a navy on the face of the planet in a three-week period, since World War II.”
Meanwhile, Iran has shut down the Strait of Hormuz – cutting off the global oil supply and spiking American gas prices.
European nations and Japan signaled on March 19 that they were ready to use military force to open the Strait of Hormuz, as The Dallas Express reported at the time.
Since then, however, Trump has expressed frustration with NATO members, suggesting the U.S. could withdraw unless others take action. He called the group a “paper tiger,” and pointed to the dwindling size of the U.K. Navy.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio also expressed frustrations with NATO in an interview on Fox News. He said the U.S. will likely “reexamine” its membership with the alliance after the Iran conflict.
“If we can’t use those bases to defend American interests, then NATO is a one-way street,” Rubio said. “Why are we in NATO? You have to ask that question.”
