(TNND) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran is “over” after Iran violated a ceasefire by attacking commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The comments, made at the start of the NATO summit in Turkey, rattled financial markets, sending oil prices surging more than 6% as investors worried the conflict could escalate and threaten global energy supplies.
Trump called Iran “dirty players” and questioned whether further negotiations were worthwhile.
“It’s a very interesting question to me. I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore,” Trump told a reporter.
“They’re scum. You know what scum is? They’re scum. They’re sick people. They’re led by people, and they’re vicious, violent people,” he continued, though he added he would allow U.S. negotiators to “keep talking if they want.”
“I don’t care. They can talk, but I think they’re wasting their time. They’re a bunch of lying guys,” he said.
The ceasefire began to unravel Tuesday when three tankers were struck by projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz, marking the latest attacks on commercial shipping in the strategic waterway despite the agreement.
In response, U.S. Central Command said it struck more than 80 targets, including “Iranian air defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities, and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats in and near the strait,” to degrade Iran’s ability to attack international shipping.
The U.S. military called Iran’s actions “unwarranted aggression” and a “dangerous violation of the ceasefire,” adding that American forces remain “prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed.”
Before the latest escalation, negotiations on a final agreement had been expected to begin after the dayslong funeral for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 in the opening moments of the war. The funeral, which ends Thursday, had been expected to provide a window for lower tensions before talks resumed.
The negotiations were expected to focus on the most contentious issues, including fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz and rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear program.
“The era of bullying and extortion is over,” Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote on X. “It leads nowhere. We don’t fold.”
Separately, Trump is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit as alliance leaders discuss the war in Ukraine and Europe’s defense. The meeting comes as NATO members continue pressing for long-term security commitments and additional support for Kyiv.
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