TEHRAN -- Commander of the Fatehin unit of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Mohammad-Ali Fathalizadeh was killed on Wednesday in the ongoing war with the United States and Israel, Iran's Defa Press news agency, a news outlet affiliated with the General Staff of Iran's Armed Forces, reported on Thursday.

PARIS - French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that using military force to "free" the Strait of Hormuz is unrealistic, according to local media reports.

"It has never been the option we have chosen, and we consider it unrealistic," Macron said during a visit to South Korea, as quoted by French news channel BFM TV.

He stressed that military action cannot provide a "lasting solution" to the Iranian nuclear issue.

"If there is no framework for diplomatic and technical negotiations, the situation could deteriorate again within a few months or a few years," he warned.

Responding to accusations by US President Donald Trump, Macron reiterated that military actions against Iran "are not our operation" and were decided unilaterally by the United States and Israel.

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump claimed that "France wouldn't let planes headed to Israel, loaded with military supplies, fly over French territory," describing the country as "very unhelpful" and warning that the United States would "remember."

The United Nations Security Council should help de-escalate the situation in the Gulf region and the Middle East, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said.

The UN Security Council actions should bring an end to conflict and resume talks, rather than endorsing illegal acts of war or adding fuel to the fire, Wang said during a telephone call with Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani on Thursday.

During the conversation, Wang reiterated China's principled stance of opposing aggression and promoting peace, highlighting the country's role as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and its wider sense of responsibility.

Wang told Al Zayani that China is willing to work with Bahrain to help put an end to the conflict and restore peace in the Gulf region and the Middle East.

Beijing is willing to work with Bahrain to promote lasting stability in the region and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of countries in the Global South, particularly the small and medium-sized nations, he added.

Al Zayani briefed Wang on the latest developments in the Middle East and Bahrain's position, saying that, in addition to navigation through the Strait of Hormuz being disrupted, Gulf countries currently face severe security challenges.

According to Al Zayani, Bahrain, which currently holds the presidency of the Gulf Cooperation Council Supreme Council, is willing to work through the UN Security Council to resolve the issue of navigation through the Strait, and also hopes to strengthen communication and coordination with China.

Earlier this week, China and Pakistan issued a five-point initiative for restoring peace and stability in the Gulf region and the Middle East, which includes calls for halting attacks on civilians and non-military targets, ensuring the security of the Strait of Hormuz and restoring regular navigation.

"A ceasefire and an end to military action are the shared aspiration of the international community," Wang said.

zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn

The European Union has warned of a prolonged energy crisis following the United States and Israel's war on Iran, which has added approximately 14 billion euros ($16 billion) to the EU's energy import bill.

A long-running conflict will intensify global competition for supplies to outlast the Middle East conflict, the EU's Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen warned, as the bloc's energy ministers weighed measures to shield households from high prices.

In a letter to EU energy ministers ahead of an emergency meeting on Tuesday, Jorgensen urged governments to make "timely preparations".

"Nobody knows how long the crisis will be, but I think it is very important to underline that it will not be short," said Jorgensen.

EU oil and gas prices have risen by 60 and 70 percent, respectively, since the conflict started a month ago, he noted.

"Thirty days of conflict have already added 14 billion euros to the (EU's) fossil fuel import bill. Even if there was a peace tomorrow, there would still be consequences. Because energy infrastructure in the (Middle East) region has been and continuously is being ruined by the war," he added.

EU officials have said Europe's immediate oil and gas supplies remain secure in the short-term, because the bloc gets most of its crude oil and natural gas from suppliers outside the Middle East, including Norway and the United States.

However, Jorgensen said Brussels is particularly concerned in the short-term about Europe's supply of refined products, such as jet fuel and diesel.

The letter said governments should avoid measures that would increase fuel consumption, restrict trade in petroleum products, or discourage output at European refineries.

"Member states are encouraged to defer any non-emergency refinery maintenance," it added.

Jorgensen said the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, is preparing a "toolbox" of measures that will be unveiled "soon" to support businesses and households, including relaxing certain state-aid rules.

"We are in a situation that might worsen, where indeed demand-reduction is necessary," he said, adding that he encouraged countries to "do whatever you can … to get renewable energy online".

One energy geopolitics specialist said supply shock effects will be swift and costly.

Speaking to France 24, Francesco Sassi, assistant professor at the University of Oslo and an expert in energy geopolitics, said the war in Iran has triggered "the largest oil supply disruption in history".

He added that "what is really concerning is that national governments will start to unilaterally take action, subsidizing energy consumption or act to secure energy supplies, and this will inevitably increase the cost of natural gas and oil in Europe".

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump told reporters the US "will be leaving (Iran) very soon" and that US military action could end as soon as in "two or three weeks".

Separately, Trump warned allies including France and the UK that the US "won't be there to help you anymore".

"All of those countries that can't get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom, which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you," Trump wrote on social media. "No 1, buy from the US, we have plenty, and No 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT.

"You'll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the USA won't be there to help you anymore, just like you weren't there for us.

"Iran has been, essentially, decimated. The hard part is done. Go get your own oil!"

It was confirmed on Tuesday that the UK's King Charles III and Queen Camilla will meet Trump when they undertake a state visit to the US at the end of this month.

jonathan@mail.chinadailyuk.com

In between Israeli bombardments of Lebanon and the fallout from Washington and Tel Aviv's joint strikes on Iran across the Middle East, Najib Saab and his team at the Arab Forum for Environment and Development, drastically reduced their operations until the shift to work online became inevitable.

Though the setup may feel like the COVID-19 pandemic all over again, the secretary-general of AFED, a not-for-profit NGO promoting environmental policies and programs across the Arab region, said that their office in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, suffered damage twice recently because of nearby explosions.

"We live between one disaster and another," he said. "We depend 90 percent on private generator for electricity, at very high cost now due to increasing fuel prices."

The United States and Israel began their attacks on Iran on Feb 28, including a strike hitting the Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab in the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan, killing 175 including dozens of schoolgirls, according to the Time Magazine. Since then, Tehran has responded with retaliatory action.

As both sides engaged in tit-for-tat strikes across the region with civilian and energy infrastructure bearing the brunt of the damages, concerns are growing over the ecological harm and public health risks.

On March 7, thick smoke covered Tehran's skies after Israeli air strikes hit oil facilities and killed at least four people. World Health Organization spokesperson Christian Lindmeier warned on March 10 that the "black rain" that fell on Tehran after the strikes "is indeed a danger" for Iranians and advised people to stay indoors.

Lindmeier also said Iranian strikes on oil infrastructure in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia raised concerns of "wider regional pollution exposure", highlighting the long-term effects of pollutants, which affect respiratory health and contaminate water.

On March 16, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called Israel's bombings of fuel depots in Tehran "ecocide" and demanded that Israel be "punished for its war crimes".

Saab, from AFED, said he believes people's exposure to toxic substances amid the conflict would have effects "continuing for decades after the war ends", which currently shows no signs of abating.

"The ultimate goal is to control natural resources, not to free people from dictatorships, as promoted by the US and Israel," he said.

What makes it more dangerous, he said, is that the main players on all sides "rely on fundamentalist ideologies to muster support among their fanatic popular base from extreme Zionists and their evangelical disciples in Israel and the US, to the theocratic regimes on the opposite side, turning the conflict into a sort of holy war".

"This leads warring parties in this conflict to grossly disregard all traditional rules governing wars and international humanitarian laws," Saab said.

"What complicates matters further is the US administration's view of the world as pure real estate opportunities, regardless of national and human rights of people.

"This is precisely demonstrated in the attacks on energy and power facilities initiated on Iran, which triggered counterattacks on energy installations in Arab countries hosting US military presence."

He said the situation may become more dangerous if seawater desalination plants in the Gulf Arab countries are targeted by bombing or their operations disrupted by massive oil pollution.

"This threatens the very survival of millions, as some countries do not have alternative sources of fresh water other than desalination."

Rumaitha Al Busaidi, vice-president of the Environment Society of Oman, said that the environmental cost of this conflict operates on two timescales.

Immediate damage

The immediate damage is visible, she said, citing refinery fires releasing toxic hydrocarbons and sulfur compounds into the air, the risk of oil entering the marine environment through the Strait of Hormuz, and the ongoing threat to ecosystems already operating under extreme stress from warming seas and chronic pollution.

"The Gulf and the Sea of Oman support over 1,600 fish species and the second-most important dugong population in the world after Australia. Military activity in these waters compounds pressures that were already approaching critical thresholds."

She said the less visible dimension may prove more consequential. A new analysis suggests the first 14 days of the conflict released more than 5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to the combined annual output of 84 small nations.

The largest share of immediate atmospheric emissions comes from fuel consumption by military aircraft and naval vessels, which generate up to 30 times the carbon output of infrastructure destruction.

"Rerouted civilian aviation across the region adds further emissions. The targeting of gas storage facilities risks releasing uncombusted methane, a far more potent greenhouse gas in the short term," Al Busaidi said. "These invisible contributions feed directly into the atmospheric imbalance driving more extreme weather patterns across the region and beyond."

From energy to food, the ongoing conflict has sent global markets into a frenzy, with the International Energy Agency saying the situation was worse than the 1970s energy crisis and the Ukraine-Russia conflict combined.

The uncertainty has prompted the Philippines, which holds the Association of Southeast Asian Nations chair this year, to be the first country to declare a national energy emergency.

"From my perspective as a corporate lawyer in Jakarta, the war in Iran may feel far away, but its environmental impact is not," said Glenn Wijaya, a senior associate at the Christian Teo & Partners law firm.

War "is inherently carbon-intensive", he said, and over time, this feeds into climate change and rising sea levels. This "is a very real and immediate concern for Indonesia", the largest economy in ASEAN, accounting for nearly 40 percent of the bloc's GDP.

"At the same time, higher oil prices are creating a tricky balance. On one hand, they push countries — including Indonesia — toward cleaner energy," Wijaya said.

"On the other, they can also lead to greater short-term reliance on fossil fuels to keep energy affordable and stable. Recent discussions about increasing coal production quota reflect that reality."

Policy push

However, there is a clear policy push in the other direction, Wijaya said, noting Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto making energy transition a priority, with Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia driving efforts such as expanding solar power, reducing diesel use, and accelerating two-wheeler electric vehicle adoption.

"So while the war is distant, its effects are not. It is shaping how Indonesia consumes energy, with mixed environmental outcomes," Wijaya said.

Saab, from AFED, said the conflict in the Middle East, as well as in Ukraine, "will have long-standing consequences on the environment for many decades".

However, the major impact might be on the energy sector, with vulnerabilities exposed, both for producing and consuming countries.

"Producers have to expedite diversifying their economies, to minimize dependence on oil and gas for income, and redraw supply routes.

"The wars will certainly delay achieving development targets across the region, putting reconstruction ahead of any other goals. This will also have a great stress on resources, from water to energy to building materials, with huge environmental impact," Saab said.

Nabeela Siddiqui, assistant professor at Vinayaka Mission's Law School, a constituent unit of Vinayaka Mission's Research Foundation in Chennai, India, said that the relationship between environmental health and national security "is not incidental in the Middle East, but it is foundational".

She said scarce water resources, fragile ecosystems, and climate vulnerability mean that environmental degradation directly threatens state stability, civilian welfare, and regional peace.

"The challenge, then, is not simply recognizing this link, but enforcing accountability for environmental harm even when conflict is ongoing. International humanitarian law provides one of the most powerful entry points," Siddiqui said.

"Embedding environmental restoration targets directly within ceasefire and peace frameworks — specifying, for instance, the supervised reopening of water treatment facilities — elevates environmental concerns from diplomatic afterthoughts to concrete, monitored obligations," Siddiqui said.

"Ultimately, the most durable strategy combines rigorous real-time evidence collection with financial conditionality — ensuring that whoever signs a peace agreement also accepts responsibility for the land, water, and air that their populations depend upon," Siddiqui said.

jan@chinadailyapac.com

WASHINGTON - While saying the United States is "nearing completion" of its core objectives in Iran, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday night threatened to hit Iran "extremely hard over the next two to three weeks," a timeline he has recently set for ending the monthlong war.

"I can say tonight that we are on track to complete all of America's military objectives very shortly. We are going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks. We're going to bring them back to the Stone Ages where they belong," Trump said in a primetime address to the nation.

The president insisted that the negotiations between the United States and Iran "are ongoing" despite Iran's denial, saying Iran's "regime change has occurred because of all of their original leaders' deaths" and "the new group is less radical and much more reasonable."

"If there is no deal, we are going to hit each and every one of their electric generating plants very hard and probably simultaneously," Trump said. He also signaled the US military could target Iran's oil infrastructure.

Trump again urged US allies to "build up some delayed courage" and take the lead in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting Washington may end the US-Israeli war with Iran without reopening the crucial global energy waterway, whose prolonged closure has fueled a global energy shock and sent oil and gas prices sharply higher.

"Go to the strait and just take it, protect it, use it for yourselves," Trump urged US allies, claiming again that the strait would "just open up naturally" with the end of the war.

Grappling with market volatility and public concerns over a drawn-out war, Trump argued the ongoing conflict, now in its fifth week, is far shorter than wars such as World War II, Vietnam or Iraq, and should be viewed as a necessary "investment" in the future rather than another prolonged conflict abroad.

Trump used the primetime address to justify the Iran war, tout US military gains, and assure the US public the war is nearing its end, local analysts say.

Markets reacted negatively to Trump's address on his Iran war strategy, with S&P 500 futures falling 0.75 percent, Nasdaq futures down 1 percent, and Dow futures dropping more than 310 points.

Meanwhile, oil prices surged, with US crude rising from about 98 US dollars to nearly 104 dollars a barrel, while Brent crude climbed from around 99 dollars to 106 dollars.

Up to 67 percent of Americans believe that Trump does not have a clear plan for handling the situation in Iran, according to the latest CNN poll.

Trump claims Iran war objectives near completion

Trump says US to be "out of Iran pretty quickly," could return for "spot hits" if needed -- Reuters

Global optimism has reignited over a potential de-escalation of the war in Iran, following remarks by United States President Donald Trump suggesting a path to end the conflict could be near, with Tehran acknowledging for the first time that Washington had held direct communications over a possible ceasefire.

Trump's comments highlighted the fluid and often contradictory timelines and statements from Washington on how and when the five-week-old war might be brought to a close.

"We'll be leaving very soon," Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday, saying the exit could take place "within two weeks, maybe two weeks, maybe three".

"Iran doesn't have to make a deal, no," he said, when asked if successful diplomacy was a prerequisite for the US to end the mission. He was expected to address the nation "to deliver an important update on Iran" at 0100 GMT on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Asian shares surged after US stocks posted their best daily performance in nearly a year, fueled by renewed hopes the conflict could soon end.

South Korea's Kospi recovered its weekly losses, jumping 8.1 percent, while Tokyo's Nikkei 225 rose 4.5 percent. A Bank of Japan survey released on Wednesday showed business sentiment among major Japanese manufacturers improved despite concerns over the war.

Meanwhile, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Tuesday his country has the "necessary will" to end the war, but is seeking guarantees the conflict will not be repeated.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed on Tuesday he had received direct messages from US special envoy Steve Witkoff, but stressed they do not amount to formal negotiations. The communications include threats or exchanges relayed via "friends", he told Qatar's Al Jazeera TV.

Araghchi also warned against any ground offensive, saying "we are waiting for them". "We know very well how to defend ourselves," he said, as thousands of US Marines and paratroopers have been deployed to the region in possible preparation for an assault.

Iran has so far rejected Trump's claims of direct talks and has continued retaliating against Israeli and US targets in the Gulf. The month-long conflict has killed thousands, disrupted energy supplies and threatened to plunge the global economy into crisis.

Still, attacks took place on multiple fronts early on Wednesday, with explosions heard in multiple areas of Tehran after US-Israeli air attacks, Iranian state media reported. Meanwhile, drones hit fuel tanks at Kuwait International Airport causing a big blaze. Qatar said a tanker leased to its state-owned energy company was struck by an Iranian missile in its territorial waters.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would press ahead with its campaign, vowing to continue "crushing Iran's terror regime". But opposition leader Yair Lapid hit back, saying Netanyahu "is unable to reach a strategic resolution; the time has come to recognize that he is simply incapable".

Iran's Revolutionary Guards issued a new threat on Tuesday targeting US businesses across the region starting Wednesday. It named 18 companies, including Microsoft, Google, Apple, Intel, IBM, Tesla and Boeing, that would be targeted from 8 pm Tehran time.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll found two-thirds of US citizens believe Washington should move quickly to end its involvement in the war, even if that means failing to achieve the Trump administration's stated goals.

However, Trump on Tuesday also criticized countries that have not helped the US war effort, such as Britain. In a social media post, he said that in response to the global fuel shortage, these countries should buy energy from the US or "find some delayed courage, go to the strait and just take it".

France and Italy have pushed back against certain US-Israeli military operations, sources said, exposing rifts among NATO allies over the conflict. Spain, which has emerged as Europe's biggest critic of the war, said on Monday that it had closed its airspace for US planes involved in the conflict.

The United Arab Emirates is preparing to help the US and its allies forcibly reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, saying the UAE is seeking a United Nations Security Council resolution for the action and has suggested the US occupy strategic islands.

SANAA - Yemen's Houthi armed group said on Wednesday it had launched a fresh round of ballistic missile attacks targeting "vital sites" in southern Israel.

In a statement aired by the group's al-Masirah television, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said the strike was part of continued support for allied forces in the region, including those in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine.

He said the operation, involving a barrage of ballistic missiles, was carried out in coordination with allied groups and had achieved its intended objectives.

Sarea warned that continued escalation against what he described as allied fronts would prompt further Houthi action until hostilities cease.

The statement comes amid rising regional tensions, with the group recently warning it could intervene militarily, particularly if the Red Sea is used as a staging ground for operations against Iran.

Last week, the group also signaled it was prepared to respond if additional forces joined those of the United States and Israel.

Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi has reiterated the group's readiness to take military action in line with developments in the wider Middle East conflict, underscoring its close ties with Iran.

TEHRAN - Loud explosions were heard in Tehran at around 5:35 am local time (0205 GMT) on Wednesday, and thick smoke could be seen rising from eastern and southern parts of the Iranian capital.

Local media have not reported any casualties so far.

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump will update the nation on the Iran war in an address at 9 p.m. ET (0100 GMT on Thursday) on Wednesday, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt posted on X on Tuesday.

Trump said Tuesday that the US military will leave Iran in two or three weeks.

"We leave because there's no reason for us to do this," Trump told reporters at the White House.

"All I have to do is leave Iran, and we'll be doing that very soon, and they'll become tumbling down," Trump said when asked about his plan for lowering gas prices.

LONDON -- Britain will provide additional air defense support to Gulf partners as regional tensions continue to escalate, according to a statement released by the British government on Tuesday.

British Defense Secretary John Healey confirmed a series of new deployments during a visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain, the statement said.

These include an extension of the deployment of British Typhoon fighter jets in Qatar, the dispatch of the Sky Sabre air defense system to Saudi Arabia, and the integration of Britain's Lightweight Multirole Launcher into Bahrain's air defenses.

The Rapid Sentry, a ground-based air defense missile system, has arrived in Kuwait, where the Royal Air Force's ORCUS drone-detection system is already operating.

In Saudi Arabia, Healey held talks with leaders and defense officials from the three Gulf countries on the conflict in the Middle East, the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route for world's oil, and broader Britain-Gulf cooperation on regional security.

The latest tensions erupted on Feb 28 with US-Israeli airstrikes on Tehran and several other Iranian cities. Since then, the attacks have continued, targeting key Iranian military command centers, missile installations, energy infrastructures and nuclear facilities.

In response, Iran has launched over 80 waves of missile and drone strikes against Israel and US military facilities across the Middle East.

In a major escalation, Iran has effectively blockaded the Strait of Hormuz, allowing only ships it considers non-hostile to pass.

TEHRAN - Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Tuesday that it had hit an Israeli container ship in the Persian Gulf with ballistic missiles during a new wave of attacks against US and Israeli targets, Tasnim news agency reported.

Apart from crimping oil and gas supplies, the ongoing conflict in the Middle East is also having a negative impact on the construction sector in India, which has enjoyed a boom in recent years.

The cement industry will be hit as a significant portion of India's bitumen and limestone comes from Gulf countries, including Iraq, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain, experts said. There are also worries that the steel sector — where limestone is a vital input — could suffer from supply chain disruptions.

A potential slowdown in the construction sector could pose challenges and hinder India's overall economic growth prospects, they warned.

The infrastructure, housing and commercial construction sectors are a high priority in India for sustaining faster economic growth, said Karori Singh, former director of the South Asia Studies Centre at the University of Rajasthan in India.

"The construction of roads and bridges for a faster supply chain" and the government's 'Housing for All' program are heavily dependent on efficient supplies of raw materials and energy, Singh said, noting that the resources are also crucial for meeting the construction demand stemming from faster urbanization.

India's highway program is still expanding. The National Highways Authority of India completed about 10,660 kilometers in the financial year ended March 2025, and has earmarked $30.6 billion to match that pace this fiscal year, but engineers and construction companies warn that the turbulence in the Middle East is raising costs and risks.

"The shock wave won't stop at fuel," Partha Pratim Biswas, who teaches construction engineering at Jadavpur University in Kolkata, told China Daily. "Housing, metros, flyovers — everything runs on steel and cement, and both depend on raw materials shipped through the Strait of Hormuz."

Around 40 percent of India's roughly 9 million metric tons of annual bitumen demand is met through imports, according to industry estimates. A significant percentage of the material comes from the Middle East and passes through the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has been disrupted in the past few weeks due to US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

Bitumen, as a petroleum by-product, comes from crude oil refining. Benoy Majumdar, managing director of Mackintosh Burn Ltd, sources bitumen from Indian state-owned oil refineries — Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum — all of which depend on imported crude.

As crude oil supply is hit, the supply of bitumen is also affected, leading to a slowdown in projects and cost overruns, Mazumder said. "When crude supply is disrupted, our project schedules and margins bleed."

Apart from bitumen, the UAE is a critical supplier, accounting for roughly 79 percent of India's high-grade limestone flux imports. These are used in the steel and cement industries. The Strait of Hormuz is the primary shipping route for these significant raw material shipments.

"We mine two-thirds of limestone domestically under environmental caps; the missing third is critical," said Biswas from Jadavpur University.

If steel output stutters, prices spike and flagship projects would start to creak, according to him.

The property market in the city of Mumbai is also under strain, said Sanjay Agarwal, a stockbroker. He said in an interview with China Daily that construction costs have risen alongside crude and steel prices, while wardriven risk aversion has reduced the demand from multinational companies for office space and tightened equity-market liquidity.

The conflict in the Middle East is "causing unmitigated pain for real estate across India, including Mumbai, the country's financial capital. From project timelines to project costs — everything seems to be going for a toss", Agarwal said, wondering when there would be an end to the crisis.

According to Singh, supply shortages and increased prices of bitumen, limestone and energy will adversely affect the construction sector, which is a major source of employment.

Arunava Das is a freelance journalist for China Daily in Kolkata.

Contact the writers at vivienxu@chinadailyapac.com.

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump has told aides that he's willing to end the US-Israeli war with Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday night, citing Trump administration officials.

Trump and his aides recently assessed that a mission to pry open the crucial global energy waterway would push the war with Iran beyond his timeline of four to six weeks, said the report.

Senior ministers from the Group of Seven countries held a virtual conference on Monday to assess the economic impact of the war in Iran amid soaring global energy prices.

One month on from the start of airstrikes by the United States and Israel, Iran's response has been to halt all shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important routes on the planet for energy supplies.

The meeting was due to include other relevant stakeholders and parties, including heads of global banks and international agencies, as well as national finance and energy ministers.

French Finance Minister Roland Lescure said the Middle East crisis was being felt differently around the world, which is why so many people would be involved in the meeting.

"There are already differences in the responses largely linked to differences in exposure to the crisis," Lescure said, noting that Asia was feeling particularly vulnerable.

"That is one of the reasons why we wanted to convene a G7 of finance, energy and central banks," he said.

The meeting will be the fourth held by the G7 since the outbreak of the conflict, indicating the seriousness of the situation and the lack of progress so far.

The US has already sought backing from G7 nations in its bid to break the Strait of Hormuz deadlock. However, it has been heavily criticized for the lack of clarity about its aims in the conflict and for the uncertainty about when it is likely to end.

"We need an exit, not an escalation in this war," said Kaja Kallas, vice-president of the European Commission.

"And that means there has to be a diplomatic solution so that this region will come out of it stronger and actually more peaceful. Therefore, it can only be a diplomatic solution, sit down and negotiate to have a way out," she said.

'Wrong approach'

The United Kingdom's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves was expected to tell other G7 countries that, in the current climate, unilateral actions, such as the imposition of new trade barriers, were entirely the wrong approach and could exacerbate energy security difficulties.

According to a statement issued by the finance ministry, Reeves was going to tell the group that its members "should act together, not in ways that shift pressure onto partners or weaken collective resilience".

It is thought that so far, as many as 3,000 people may have been killed in Iran, and a further 1,000 in an overspill of the conflict into Lebanon.

Last week, G7 foreign ministers met and called for a halt to attacks on civilian infrastructure and said it was an "absolute necessity" for Iran to reestablish free passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

julian@mail.chinadailyuk.com

Iran has accused the United States of plotting a ground attack even as Washington publicly pushed for a negotiated deal, while US and Israeli forces continued their strikes on the country on Monday and US President Donald Trump openly floated seizing Iran's Kharg Island oil infrastructure.

It came as Pakistan hosted foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt on Sunday for a high-level meeting aimed at de-escalating the conflict.

The discussions lasted several hours. Pakistani Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar described the talks as "detailed and in-depth", announcing that Islamabad would host US-Iran negotiations "in the coming days".

Pakistan has emerged as a key intermediary between Washington and Tehran, relaying messages and coordinating back-channel communications. However, there was no immediate response from Washington or Tehran, and it remained unclear whether the talks would be direct or indirect.

As the conflict entered its fifth week, the Pentagon has bolstered its military presence in the region, fueling speculation over a potential ground incursion. Trump said he wants to "take the oil" in Iran, reviving the idea of seizing Kharg Island.

"Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don't. We have a lot of options," he told the Financial Times in an interview published early on Monday.

But launching an amphibious assault on Kharg would require passing through the Strait of Hormuz and most of the Gulf.

Joe Kent, a former director of the US National Counterterrorism Center, who stepped down recently, warned in remarks in an article in The Washington Post that any occupation of Kharg Island would be strategically unsound and could prove "disastrous, exposing US troops to severe danger both there and across the region".

Meanwhile, Tehran said its armed forces are well prepared to confront US troops. "The enemy publicly sends messages of negotiation and dialogue while secretly planning a ground attack," Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said in a statement on Sunday.

Iran's Navy Commander Shahram Irani also warned on Monday that the USS Abraham Lincoln would face shore-to-sea missile strikes if it entered what he described as Iran's strike range.

Fresh strikes

On Monday, the Israeli military launched a fresh wave of airstrikes across Iran, targeting sites from the Persian Gulf coast and southern islands to northern cities. Iranian media reported that a facility at the Tabriz Petrochemical Company was hit again. Earlier, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed Iran's heavy water production plant in Khondab is no longer operational following an Israeli military strike.

Iran's Ministry of Energy reported widespread power outages on Sunday in Tehran, its surrounding areas and neighboring Alborz Province,"following attacks on electricity infrastructure". Authorities later said the outages were quickly resolved via grid adjustments.

It remained unclear, however, whether the strikes were linked to US threats to target Iranian power stations and other energy infrastructure unless Tehran accepts a ceasefire deal. Trump extended his deadline by 10 days to April 6, as Washington put forward a peace plan.

Iran, meanwhile, has ramped up pressure on its Gulf neighbors. Kuwait announced an Indian worker was killed in an attack on a power and desalination plant, in one of the most significant attacks in the Gulf over the past 24 hours. The incident came shortly after Iranian energy facilities in Tehran were targeted.

Other Gulf states on Monday also reported intercepting drones and missiles. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted five missiles targeting its oil-rich Eastern Province, Bahrain sounded a missile alert, and a fireball was seen over Dubai as an incoming missile was taken out by defenses.

The conflict has disrupted global oil and natural gas supplies, and triggered fertilizer shortages. Brent crude, the international benchmark, neared $117 a barrel on Monday — up nearly 60 percent since Feb 28 when the conflict began.

Contact the writers at cuihaipei@chinadaily.com.cn.

Iran has accused the United States of plotting a ground attack even as Washington publicly pushed for a negotiated deal, while US and Israeli forces continued their strikes on the Islamic republic on Monday and US President Donald Trump openly floated seizing Iran's Kharg Island oil export hub.

It came as Pakistan hosted foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt on Sunday for a high-level meeting aimed at deescalating the conflict.

The four-way consultations lasted several hours. Pakistani Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar described the talks as "detailed and in-depth", announcing that Islamabad would host US-Iran negotiations "in the coming days".

Pakistan has emerged as a key intermediary between Washington and Tehran, relaying messages and coordinating backchannel communications. However, there was no immediate response from Washington or Tehran, and it remained unclear whether the talks would be direct or indirect.

As the war entered its fifth week, the Pentagon has bolstered its military presence in the region, fueling speculation over a potential ground incursion. Trump said he wants to "take the oil" in Iran, reviving the idea of seizing Kharg Island.

"Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don't. We have a lot of options," he told the Financial Times in an interview published early on Monday.

But launching an amphibious assault on Kharg would require passing through the Strait of Hormuz and most of the Persian Gulf.

Joe Kent, a former director of the US National Counterterrorism Center who recently stepped down, warned in remarks to the Washington Post that any occupation of Kharg Island would be strategically unsound and could prove "disastrous, exposing US troops to severe danger both there and across the region".

Meanwhile, Tehran said its armed forces are well prepared to confront US troops.

"The enemy publicly sends messages of negotiation and dialogue while secretly planning a ground attack. Our men are waiting for the arrival of the American soldiers on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional allies once and for all," Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said in a statement on Sunday.

Iran's Navy Commander Shahram Irani also warned on Monday that the USS Abraham Lincoln would face shore-to-sea missile strikes if it entered what he described as Iran's strike range.

On Monday, the Israeli military launched a fresh wave of airstrikes across Iran, targeting sites from the Persian Gulf coast and southern islands to northern cities. Iranian media reported that a facility at the Tabriz Petrochemical Complex was hit again. Earlier, the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed Iran's heavy water production plant in Khondab is no longer operational following an Israeli military strike.

Iran's Ministry of Energy reported widespread power outages on Sunday in Tehran, its surrounding areas and neighboring Alborz Province, "following attacks on electricity infrastructure". Authorities later said the outages were quickly resolved via grid adjustments.

It remained unclear, however, whether the strikes were linked to Trump's threats to target Iranian power stations and other energy infrastructure unless Tehran accepts a ceasefire deal. Trump extended his deadline by 10 days to April 6, as Washington put forward a 15-point peace plan.

Iran, meanwhile, has ramped up pressure on its Gulf neighbors. Kuwait announced an Indian worker was killed in an attack on a power and desalination plant, in one of the most significant attacks in the Gulf over the past 24 hours. The incident came shortly after Iranian energy facilities in Tehran were targeted.

Other Gulf states on Monday also reported intercepting drones and missiles. Saudi Arabia intercepted five missiles targeting its oil-rich Eastern Province, Bahrain sounded a missile alert, and a fireball was seen over Dubai as an incoming missile was taken out by defenses.

The war has already disrupted global oil and natural gas supplies, triggered fertilizer shortages and disrupted air travel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, neared $117 a barrel on Monday — up nearly 60 percent since Feb 28 when the war began.

JERUSALEM - A fire broke out at the Haifa oil refinery in northern Israel following a recent round of missile attacks launched by Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah, Israel's Channel 12 reported on Monday.

It remains unclear whether the facility was directly hit by a missile or struck by debris from an intercepted projectile, the report said.