Donald Trump Says He Will "Hit Iran Hard Next Week," Hints at Prolonged War

[Financial News] United States President Donald Trump has declared that he will strike Iran hard over the coming week.
In an interview with Fox News Radio aired on the 13th (local time), Trump said he would "hit Iran very hard next week." His remarks suggest that, more than two weeks into the conflict, he intends to maintain military pressure rather than seek a quick end to the war.
Trump also addressed the possibility of providing military escorts for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, saying, "We will do it if necessary," while adding that he would first watch how the situation develops. This is seen as reaffirming his existing stance that the US will not immediately launch escort operations, even as global oil prices rise due to a potential blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
On when the war might end, he commented that it "could be in the not-too-distant future," but added, "When I feel it, when I feel it in my bones."
Regarding Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Sayyid Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei, he said, "He was injured," but added, "He is probably alive in some form or another."
Trump said he would "look into" a temporary waiver of the Jones Act, which restricts transport between US ports to US-flagged vessels.
The White House had earlier announced that it was considering a roughly 30-day waiver of the Jones Act, mainly for energy products, in an effort to curb rising oil prices.
Trump also said that there is currently no military operation under way to seize Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium, noting, "We are not focused on that issue right now, but that could change depending on circumstances."
On the possibility of an internal uprising in Iran, he argued that "it is a major obstacle for unarmed citizens," suggesting that such an uprising is unlikely to occur in the near term.
Asked about the possibility of seizing Kharg Island, a key hub for Iran’s crude oil exports, he avoided giving a concrete answer but remarked, "My thinking could change in a matter of seconds."
Trump, meanwhile, raised the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin may be providing some support to Iran. He suggested that Russia could be helping Iran because the United States is backing Ukraine.
clean@fnnews.com Lee Jeong-hwa Reporter