 "'I’m watching! You’re playing right into...': Trump warns 'everyone' to keep oil prices down")
President Donald Trump on Monday issued a sharp warning to global actors to keep oil prices down as tensions escalate with Iran.
Taking to Truth Social, he said, “EVERYONE, KEEP OIL PRICES DOWN. I’M WATCHING! YOU’RE PLAYING RIGHT INTO THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY. DON’T DO IT!”
In a second post, he directed the Department of Energy to act swiftly: “DRILL, BABY, DRILL!!! And I mean NOW!!!”
The warning came as Trump spent a second day closely tracking the fallout from Saturday night’s US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
According to a CNN report, citing multiple US officials, the president has held regular briefings with senior aides as developments unfold.
Despite the rising regional tensions, Trump still plans to attend the Nato summit in The Hague later this week.
However, two officials said those travel plans could change if the situation in the Middle East escalates significantly, reported CNN.
Earlier Monday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt issued a stern warning to Iran, cautioning against any move to close the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil chokepoints.
Such an action, she said, could have “disastrous consequences” for global energy markets and further destabilise the region.
When asked about Trump’s statements last night regarding regime change in Iran, The Guardian quoted Leavitt as saying, “The President’s posture and our military posture has not changed.”
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“The President was just simply raising a question that I think many people around the world are asking, if the Iranian regime refuses to give up their nuclear programme or engage in talks … if they refuse to engage in diplomacy moving forward, why shouldn’t the Iranian people rise up against this brutal terrorist regime?” she said.
“That’s a question the President raised last night,” she added. “But as far as our military posture, it hasn’t changed.”
Leavitt also said that there has been both “public and private messages sent to the Iranians” since Saturday night.
With inputs from agencies
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