By Trevor Hunnicutt, Asif Shahzad, Alexander Cornwell and Sabrina Valle WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD, March 30 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said the U.S. and Iran have been meeting "directly and
Trump issues new warning to Tehran, Iran calls US peace proposals 'unrealistic'
Escalating Tensions Between the US, Iran, and Regional Powers
By Alexander Cornwell, Trevor Hunnicutt and Asif Shahzad
US-Iran Confrontation Intensifies
TEL AVIV/WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD, March 30 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump warned on Monday that the U.S. would obliterate Iran's energy plants and oil wells if Tehran does not open the Strait of Hormuz, after Tehran described U.S. peace proposals as "unrealistic" and fired waves of missiles at Israel.
Israel's military said two drones from Yemen had also been intercepted on Monday, two days after the Iran-aligned Houthis entered the war by firing missiles at Israel, and that Lebanon's Hezbollah had fired rockets at Israel.
Israeli forces carried out missile strikes on what they called military infrastructure in Tehran and infrastructure used by Iran-backed Hezbollah in Beirut, leaving black smoke hanging over the Lebanese capital.
Turkey's defense ministry said a ballistic missile launched from Iran entered Turkish airspace before being shot down by NATO air and missile defenses deployed in the eastern Mediterranean, the fourth such incident since the start of the war.
Regional Impact and Civilian Toll
Tehran remains defiant in the month-old war, which began with U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28 and has spread across the region, killing thousands, disrupting energy supplies and hitting the global economy.
The majority of those reported killed were in Iran and Lebanon, and many were civilians. Iran has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that normally carries about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.
Military Deployments and Diplomatic Efforts
US Troop Movements and Negotiations
TROOPS DEPLOY AS TALKS CONTINUE
Thousands of soldiers from the U.S. Army's elite 82nd Airborne Division have started arriving in the Middle East, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Monday, part of a reinforcement that would expand Trump's options to include the deployment of forces inside Iranian territory, even as he pursues talks with Tehran.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later said Trump wanted to reach a deal with Tehran before an April 6 deadline he set last week after extending an earlier deadline he had set for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz. Leavitt said talks with Iran were progressing, adding that what Tehran says publicly differs from what it tells U.S. officials in private.
Iran's Response to Peace Proposals
Iran said earlier on Monday it had received U.S. peace proposals via intermediaries, following talks on Sunday between the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the proposals were "unrealistic, illogical and excessive".
"Our position is clear. We are under military aggression. Therefore, all our efforts and strength are focused on defending ourselves," he told a press conference.
Soon after Baghaei's remarks, Trump said in a social media post that the United States was in talks with a "more reasonable regime" to end the war in Iran, but he also issued a new warning over the Strait of Hormuz.
"Great progress has been made but, if for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately 'Open for Business,' we will conclude our lovely 'stay' in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island," Trump wrote.
Trump also threatened to attack the desalination plants that supply clean water in Iran.
Iranian Legislation and Nuclear Concerns
The national security committee in the Iranian parliament, meanwhile, approved a bill that bans ships from the U.S., Israel and countries that unilaterally sanction Iran, from moving through the Hormuz Strait, according to state media. The bill must still be approved by the full parliament and it was not clear when or if such a vote would take place.
A Pakistani security official, whose country is trying to mediate in the war, said it appeared unlikely there would be direct U.S.-Iran talks this week.
Baghaei also said Iran's parliament was reviewing a possible exit from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which recognizes the right to develop, research, produce and use nuclear energy as long as nuclear weapons are not pursued.
Trump has cited the prevention of Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons as a reason for attacking the country on February 28. Tehran denies it is seeking a nuclear arsenal.
Regional Leaders' Perspectives
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in an interview with U.S. media outlet Newsmax, declined to give a timeline for achieving his country’s objectives in the war. While he said that "it's definitely beyond the halfway point," he later clarified that he meant in terms of missions, not time.
Economic and Energy Market Repercussions
US Funding and Arab Involvement
OIL MARKETS BRACE FOR TURMOIL
The White House said Trump was considering asking Arab nations to pay for the cost of the war. "It's an idea that I know that he has and something that I think you'll hear more from him on," Leavitt said in response to a reporter's question about the idea.
His administration requested an additional $200 billion in funding for the war, which faces stiff opposition in the U.S. Congress, which must approve new spending.
Regional Conflict and Oil Supply Risks
Iran has fired on Arab Gulf states during the conflict and war has been reignited between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Three members of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) were killed in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon after a bloody weekend in which Lebanese journalists and medics were killed in Israeli strikes.
Benchmark oil prices extended gains on Monday, with Brent crude futures on course for a record monthly rise.
The Houthis' attacks on Israel raised the prospect that they could target and block a second important shipping route, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Market Outlook and Future Risks
The oil market has all but discounted the prospect of a negotiated end to the war and "is bracing for a sharp escalation in military hostilities," said Vandana H
