Donald Trump has said his preferred move is to “take the oil” from Iran. He made the comment during a recent interview and admitted that doing so would likely require U.S. troops to stay at Kharg Island for a long time, even though he believes taking the island would be “very easily” done.
“To be honest with you, my favorite thing is to take the oil in Iran but some stupid people back in the U.S. say: ‘why are you doing that?’ But they’re stupid people,” Trump told The Financial Times. This is not a new idea for him – he has been pushing for the U.S. to take Kharg Island for years and even suggested in 1988 that he would “do a number” on it.
JUST IN:
— BRICS News (@BRICSinfo) March 30, 2026President Trump confirms he is considering seizing Iran's Kharg Island, FT reports.
"My preference would be to take the oil…I don't think they have any defense. We could take it very easily." pic.twitter.com/W7Ze4jj4Zi
Kharg Island is where most of Iran’s oil is exported from, making it a major strategic target. However, military assessments warn that attacking it would be risky, would raise the chances of U.S. casualties, and might make the ongoing conflict last much longer.
Trump’s confidence about Kharg Island stands in sharp contrast to his military’s warnings
Trump said he has not made a final decision yet. “Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don’t. We have a lot of options,” he said, adding, “It would also mean we had to be there [in Kharg Island] for a while.” He also said, “I don’t think they have any defense. We could take it very easily.”
This comes about a month after joint U.S. and Israeli strikes killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war. Since then, dozens of other leaders from Iran’s theocratic regime have also been killed. Trump joked last week that he is hesitant to tell reporters who he is negotiating with, fearing they might be targeted next.
There has been debate over whether a “regime change” has taken place in Iran. Trump believes it has, pointing to a shift in the people the U.S. is now dealing with. “The people we’re dealing with are a totally different group of people . . . [They] are very professional,” he said.
Critics point out that the regime hasn’t changed, as well as pointing out that all the U.S.-backed leaders in the region are now dead.
Absolute humiliation for the Pentagon. An expert explains why the US plan to invade Kharg Island is a total suicide mission. Iran can just turn off the oil valves upstream leaving US troops stranded on an island as sitting ducks for Iranian missiles. pic.twitter.com/aL1MnsW1Ho
— Furkan Gözükara (@FurkanGozukara) March 23, 2026
Despite reports of “very strong talks” with Iranian leaders about a possible deal to end the war, the administration appears to be preparing for more military action at the same time. In recent days, Trump has deployed thousands of troops to the Middle East, including 2,000 soldiers from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division.
Observers argue that these moves reflect a broader pattern of decisions that many MAGA supporters feel Trump has betrayed. Both negotiations and military preparations are happening at the same time, painting a complicated picture of where things are headed with Iran.
