Iran fired live missiles into the Strait of Hormuz and temporarily disrupted traffic through the strategic oil chokepoint Tuesday as President Donald Trump’s envoys opened high-stakes nuclear talks in Geneva, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei simultaneously warning that American warships could be sent “to the bottom of the sea.”
Iranian state-affiliated outlets reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched missiles from coastal and inland positions during what it called the “Smart Control of the Strait of Hormuz” exercise, while drone units operated under signal-jamming conditions.
The Strait of Hormuz — through which roughly 20 percent of global oil supply passes — is one of the world’s most vital maritime corridors.
Rear Adm. Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the IRGC Navy, said Iran stands ready to shut down the waterway if ordered by senior leadership.
“The decision to close the Strait of Hormuz rests with the senior leaders,” Tangsiri said, adding that Iran’s forces are prepared to carry out such an order.
The missile launches unfolded as Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, met Iranian officials in Geneva for a second round of indirect nuclear negotiations.
One day earlier, Trump said he would be “indirectly” involved in the talks and warned that while Iran “wants to make a deal,” the regime does not want “the consequences of not making a deal.”
“I don’t think they want the consequences,” Trump said aboard Air Force One Monday. “They want to make a deal.”
The president also reiterated that if negotiations fail, “it’s going to be a bad day for Iran — very bad.”
Khamenei escalated the rhetoric Tuesday as talks proceeded.
Referring to U.S. naval deployments in the region, he wrote that while an American aircraft carrier is dangerous, “more dangerous than that warship is the weapon that can send that warship to the bottom of the sea.”
In another message, Khamenei declared that the United States is a “corrupt, oppressive empire” in decline and suggested the world’s strongest military “may at times be struck so hard that it cannot get up again.”
The Supreme Leader also referenced Trump directly, writing that the U.S. president had acknowledged Washington’s inability to eliminate the Islamic Republic over the past 47 years, adding: “You, too, will not be able to do this.”
The missile exercise and public threats come amid a visible U.S. military buildup across the Middle East as the administration reinforces both defensive and offensive capabilities while diplomacy continues.
A New York Times report last week detailed expanded air defenses and naval positioning intended to protect U.S. forces and prepare options should negotiations collapse. CNN reported this week that additional aircraft and missile defense systems have been repositioned closer to the region.
Iranian commanders have dismissed those deployments.
Last week, IRGC senior adviser General Mohammad Reza Naghdi declared that even if the United States deployed all twelve of its aircraft carriers near Iran, it “won’t be able to do a damn thing.”
“America is finished,” Naghdi said, asserting that Washington is incapable of aggression and “drowning in humiliation.”
The coordinated messaging — live-fire drills in a global energy chokepoint, threats against U.S. warships, and taunts aimed directly at Trump — underscores the volatility surrounding the Geneva negotiations.
For now, the administration is maintaining what officials describe as a dual-track approach: pursue a deal, but prepare for escalation.
“They want to make a deal,” Trump said Monday. “But if they don’t, it’s going to be a bad day for Iran.”
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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