Under the "ultimatum": Iran reiterated that "it will retaliate if the power station is attacked", and the United States considers ground troops to "seize the island"

# By Dong Jing

Source: Wall Street CN

Trump Issues Ultimatum Demanding Iran Open Strait of Hormuz, Threatening Strikes on Power Plants; Iran Warns of Retaliatory Destruction of U.S.-Israeli Power Facilities and Full Strait Blockade. U.S. Accelerates Deployment of Thousands of Troops, Weighing Ground "Island-Seizure" Operation on Iran’s Oil Hub Kharg Island; Middle East Geopolitical and Energy Risks Surge.

Tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue to escalate, with their standoff over energy infrastructure and strategic waterways approaching a critical point.

According to Xinhua News Agency, Trump issued an "ultimatum" on March 21 local time, demanding Iran fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, or face strikes to destroy Iranian power plants. Iran responded with tough rhetoric: the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) made clear that if Iranian power stations are attacked, it will carry out reciprocal retaliation against all Israeli power facilities and those supplying U.S. military bases in the Middle East, and will completely close the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, Israel’s *Jerusalem Post* revealed that senior U.S. officials have briefed Israel and other countries that the U.S. "may have no choice" but to launch a ground military operation against Iran’s Kharg Island. The U.S. military is accelerating the deployment of thousands of Marines to the Middle East.

These developments have significantly heightened market concerns over Middle East geopolitical risks. The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most critical oil transit routes. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that if Iranian infrastructure is attacked, all key energy and oil facilities across the Middle East will become legitimate targets, and "oil prices will rise for a long time".

## Trump’s Ultimatum: 48-Hour Deadline Ignites Standoff

On March 21 local time, Trump posted on social media, demanding Iran fully and unthreateningly open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, threatening: "The United States will hit and obliterate Iran’s various power plants, starting with the largest one!"

Iran’s largest power facility is the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in the southwest. Iran’s Press TV reported that the plant was deliberately attacked on the night of March 17, with the strike site just 200 meters from the nuclear reactor.

On March 20, Trump had also stated the U.S. was "very close" to achieving its goals, considering a gradual de-escalation of military actions against Iran, and insisted the Strait of Hormuz must be guarded by the countries that use it.

## Iran Issues Tough Responses, Outlining Four "Punitive" Measures

In response to Trump’s threats, multiple Iranian official bodies issued strong statements.

On March 22, the Iranian Armed Forces released a statement outlining four "punitive" measures to be activated immediately if the U.S. attacks Iranian power stations:

1. The Strait of Hormuz will be fully closed until Iran’s damaged power facilities are rebuilt.

2. Widespread strikes will target all Israeli power, energy, and communications infrastructure.

3. All U.S.-owned companies in the region will be completely destroyed.

4. Power facilities in all countries hosting U.S. military bases will become legitimate targets.

"If the enemy inflicts damage on our power facilities, we will defend national interests at all costs," the statement read.

On March 23, the IRGC issued a further statement clarifying the logic of reciprocal retaliation: "We are determined to respond to any threat with an equivalent level of deterrence... you strike power, we strike power". The statement also denied earlier reports that Iran intended to attack desalination facilities in Gulf states, calling Trump’s accusation that the IRGC planned such strikes a "lie".

Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf also warned on March 22 that if Iranian power stations and other infrastructure are targeted, all key energy and oil facilities across the Middle East will be deemed legitimate targets and suffer irreversible destruction, and "oil prices will rise for a long time".

## Iran Insists Strait Is Not Blockaded, Sets Passage Conditions

Iran’s position on the Strait of Hormuz has been nuanced.

On March 22, Iran’s Foreign Ministry stated the strait is not blockaded, and vessels may continue to navigate under necessary wartime measures. It specified that ships belonging to the U.S., Israel, and other aggressor nations do not meet normal, non-hostile passage criteria. Non-hostile ships from other countries, if not participating in or cooperating with aggression against Iran and complying with Iran’s security regulations, may pass safely after coordinating with Iranian authorities.

Iranian President Pezeshkian posted on the evening of March 22 local time that the Strait of Hormuz is open to all, "except aggressors who violate Iran’s territory". The Iranian Armed Forces also emphasized the strait is under Iran’s "intelligent control," with "innocent passage permitted within a specific framework, under conditions that safeguard our security and interests".

## U.S. Accelerates Deployment, "Island-Seizure" Plan Emerges

U.S. military deployment moves are drawing intense attention.

Citing Israel’s *Jerusalem Post* on March 23, Xinhua reported that senior U.S. officials recently briefed Israel and other countries that the U.S. "may have no choice" but to launch a ground military operation against Iran’s Kharg Island.

According to two sources, the U.S. military is speeding up the deployment of thousands of Marines and naval personnel to the Middle East, including the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer, amphibious transport dock USS Portland, and dock landing ship USS Comstock, carrying approximately 4,500 Marines and other combat troops.

Kharg Island, located in the northwest of the Persian Gulf about 25 kilometers off Iran’s coast, is Iran’s largest crude oil export hub, handling roughly 90% of Iran’s oil exports. On March 15, Trump threatened the U.S. was ready to launch new strikes on Kharg Island and potentially target additional Iranian oil infrastructure.

On March 21, Iran’s Tasnim News Agency quoted a military source as saying that if the U.S. launches a "military aggression" against Kharg Island, Iran will respond with an "unprecedented counterattack" since U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran began.

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