U.S. President Donald Trump speaks after meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on July 14, 2026.
Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
US President Donald Trump warned on Tuesday that US military attacks on Iran will intensify next week if Iran does not cooperate with peace talks in the coming days.
In an interview with Fox News on Tuesday night, President Trump suggested the conflict was more likely to intensify than diminish as the fragile ceasefire agreed last month continues to tear apart.
“We’re going to hit them hard tonight,” he said. “We’re going to hit them hard tomorrow night. We’re going to hit them hard the night after tomorrow.”
He added that unless there is a diplomatic breakthrough, the US military will continue targeting key Iranian infrastructure next week.
“Next week is going to be really bad for them because the power plants come on line next week,” he said. “The bridges are coming next week. We’re going to destroy all their power plants. We’re going to destroy all their bridges unless they come to the table and negotiate.”
President Trump’s interview came after U.S. Central Command carried out additional strikes against Iran on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Tehran launched attacks on several Gulf states.
President Trump earlier this week threatened to impose a 20% tariff on cargo shipped through the Strait of Hormuz, but waived that demand on Tuesday. The president said Gulf countries would invest in the United States in exchange for repayments.
The escalation in fighting comes after the United States launched attacks on dozens of Iranian targets last week in retaliation for attacks on commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
President Trump then said the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran was “over.”
Oil prices rose slightly on Wednesday morning as concerns persisted over safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil shipping route in the Middle East. Brent crude oil futures, the global benchmark, hovered above $85 per barrel last month.
Jacob Larsen, chief safety and security officer at international shipping company BIMCO, appeared on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Wednesday and said the current situation was “not an easy one to navigate” for the industry.
“These messages going back and forth and changing direction completely only add to the confusion and complexity of the whole situation,” he said. “When you step back and look at it from above, the overall environment we see is increased uncertainty and increased risk, and with that comes higher prices.”
