President Trump used the closing hours of the NATO summit here to declare that Washington's fragile truce with Iran effectively no longer exists, hours after a fresh round of American strikes triggered retaliatory attacks from Tehran that reached as far as Bahrain and Kuwait.
Trump said Wednesday morning that he believes the memorandum of understanding with Iran "is over," telling reporters at the summit that "it's a waste of time dealing with them." It was, by the account of reporters traveling with him, the clearest signal yet that the deal he signed in France last month has all but collapsed.
The president did not soften his language for the cameras. He described the Iranian government as "evil, sick people," and accused Tehran of behaving like "dirty players" for targeting commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz in violation of the ceasefire.
He also said "They are scoundrels. I hate them, nobody likes them. They must not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons ...
For me? The ceasefire is over. Talking to the Iranians is a waste of time. Something's wrong with them. They're cuckoo.
I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum. And if they get a nuclear weapon.. They're liars.. In my eyes, it's a waste of time to continue talking to them. They're crazy, for me it's over."
He went further in remarks carried by Israeli outlets, saying overnight strikes had hit Iran roughly twenty times harder than earlier rounds and adding that a nuclear-armed Iran could never be tolerated. He also referenced the two assassination attempts against him, in Butler, Pennsylvania, and at Mar-a-Lago, that American officials have linked to Iranian plotting, saying he intends to "eliminate the cancer."
The rhetoric came against the backdrop of a rapidly escalating military exchange. Central Command said the United States had launched a "series of powerful strikes" against Iran on Tuesday, and Washington reimposed sanctions on Iranian oil sales in response to attacks on commercial shipping near the Strait of Hormuz. One American official described the operation as a "punishment," explicitly distinguishing it from a "proportional" response.
Iran did not wait long to answer. Iran's army said it launched a drone attack on Bahrain's Isa Air Base, which hosts American forces, in the early hours of Wednesday, according to the semi-official Fars news agency. Sirens sounded across Bahrain, with the country's interior ministry posting warnings urging citizens to seek safety, the second such alert within roughly two hours. Iranian state media also reported explosions on Kharg Island, a critical hub for the country's oil exports, as well as in the port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik and on Qeshm Island.
Iran's Foreign Ministry accused Washington of openly violating the ceasefire and the Islamabad understanding by striking coastal bases and civilian facilities in Hormozgan and Mahshahr provinces, a statement that notably made no mention of Iran's own attacks on shipping in the strait. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote that "the era of bullying and extortion is over," adding, "We don't fold." Kuwait, which was also struck, said the attacks on its territory undermined efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region, according to Agence France-Presse.
