Trump Declared the Ceasefire with Iran Over

U.S. President Donald Trump considers the truce with Iran to be over. He made this statement during the NATO summit in Turkey, according to Bloomberg.

“I believe this [ceasefire] is over. In my opinion, it’s just a waste of time,” Trump said. “I don’t want anything to do with them; they’re scum (in the original, Trump used the word ‘scum’— Oninvest). “Do you know what scum are? They’re scum. They’re sick people, led by sick people, and they’re vicious, cruel people, and if they had nuclear weapons, they’d use them,” the U.S. president added (quotes via Bloomberg).

At the same time, Trump noted that he would not stand in the way of continuing negotiations with Iran, although he does not consider them useful: “There’s something wrong with them [the Iranian leadership]; they’re crazy. They can talk, but I think they’re just wasting their time,” the U.S. president said.

The price of Brent crude accelerated its rise following Trump’s remarks: September futures rose by more than 5% and surpassed $78 per barrel. U.S. WTI crude rose by about the same amount, with the price climbing to $74.2 per barrel.

Major European stock indices fell by 1–2%. The German DAX fell the most—by 2.2%—while the French CAC 40 lost 1.9% and the British FTSE 100 fell 1.4%. The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell by 1.6%.

In the U.S., futures for the S&P 500 broad-market index were down 0.8%, Nasdaq 100 futures were down 1.2%, and Dow Jones blue-chip index futures were down 1.1%.

On July 7, the U.S. reinstated sanctions on Iranian oil and then resumed strikes against Iran, which were followed by a response from Iran. The escalation was triggered by attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz: according to Bloomberg and Axios, a Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker and a Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker were damaged.

The U.S. and Iran reached a ceasefire in April and subsequently extended it; in mid-June, they signed a memorandum of understanding that was intended to launch negotiations on a comprehensive peace agreement. But the two sides have already resumed mutual attacks twice in recent months following similar escalations triggered by the downing of a U.S. helicopter over the strait and an Iranian attack on a commercial cargo ship.

The Strait of Hormuz is a vital maritime route through which, prior to the war between the United States and Iran, one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supplies from the energy-rich Persian Gulf region passed.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor