Trump says with more time, US can ‘take the oil’ in Iran

Despite weeks long Iranian blockade on Strait of Hormuz, US president claims Washington can ‘easily’ reopen waterway.Donald Trump has suggested that the United States is looking to seize Iran’s oil industry, appearing to argue that more time is needed for the war.“With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL, & MAKE A FORTUNE,” the US president wrote in a social media post on Friday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Iran condemns US-Israeli ‘moral collapse’ after attacks on civilian siteslist 2 of 3Kuwait desalination plant, oil refinery hit by missile and drone strikeslist 3 of 3Over 100 US legal experts condemn strikes on Iran as possible ‘war crimes’end of list“IT WOULD BE A ‘GUSHER’ FOR THE WORLD???”It is not clear how the US would open Hormuz, which Iran effectively blocked early in the conflict, sending energy prices soaring.Trump has been promising for weeks that the US will reopen the strait soon. One month ago, he said that US Navy ships would accompany oil ships through the strategic waterway.But the US military has said that it is “not ready” to escort slow-moving vessels in the narrow strait, where its ships could become an easy target for Iranian drones and missiles.Trump’s assertion that the US would “take” Iran’s oil marks an escalation in his rhetoric.Under the international law doctrine of Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1962, oil and minerals belong to the countries where they are located.“The free and beneficial exercise of the sovereignty of peoples and nations over their natural resources must be furthered by the mutual respect of States based on their sovereign equality,” the resolution says.Trump has regularly called for “taking the oil” in countries where the US has been militarily involved, including Iraq and Venezuela.The Iranian governing system has remained intact despite the assassinations of some of its top officials and the daily bombardment by the US and Israel, and it remains in control of the country’s natural resources.