Axios: Trump Prepares to Shift Confrontation with Iran to Hormuz

SadaNews - Axios revealed, citing U.S. officials, that President Donald Trump's administration is preparing for a confrontation that could last days or even weeks with Iran, as Washington's focus has shifted from targeting the Iranian nuclear and missile programs to an open battle over the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important waterways for energy trade.

According to the report, the White House believes that the temporary truce established under the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran has effectively ended, following attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting the United States to launch a second wave of military strikes inside Iran.

The site quoted a U.S. official stating that the duration of the escalation will depend entirely on the next Iranian step, explaining that the confrontation could last a day or two, or extend to a week or even a month if Tehran continues to target navigation in the strait.

The report indicated that U.S. strikes have expanded in recent hours to include targets related to infrastructure within Iran, including transport facilities, for the first time in months, as part of a strategy aimed at reducing Tehran's capacity to threaten navigation.

In this context, Trump announced that the truce "has ended," emphasizing that the recent strikes were a response to the attacks targeting commercial vessels, before later hinting that Iranian officials had communicated with Washington in an effort to reach a new agreement.

However, the U.S. president expressed skepticism about the possibility of trusting any understanding with Tehran, stating that the Iranians "want to make a deal," but he added that he is uncertain of their commitment to any future agreement.

According to Axios, keeping the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial navigation has become the primary goal for the U.S. administration, amid a belief within the White House that protecting global energy movement has become a priority that surpasses other war objectives.

On the other hand, Iran asserts that organizing navigation in the strait is a sovereign right and considers that any arrangements for ships to pass must be made according to its terms, while Iranian officials have warned that the continuation of U.S. strikes will be met with a new military response.

The report added that the U.S. administration sees that the continued flow of hundreds of oil tankers through the strait over the past weeks has granted it greater margin for escalation, with decreased concerns about a sharp and immediate rise in oil prices, which has encouraged it to maintain military pressure on Tehran.

Axios concludes that the confrontation between Washington and Tehran has entered a new phase, where the focus is no longer on the Iranian nuclear program, but on controlling the future navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, which could determine the trajectory of the conflict in the coming period.