Iran has warned this Sunday that it will attack energy infrastructures linked to the United States if the American president, Donald Trump, maintains the bombings against strategic targets of the Iranian oil industry.
The warning comes after the United States launched an offensive during the early hours against Kharg Island, a key enclave for the Islamic Republic's energy system and one of the country's main crude oil export points.
Direct threat against oil companies
After the attack, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has responded with a harsh message addressed to Washington and to the companies that collaborate with its military strategy.
“We will reduce to ashes the energy infrastructure of any oil company that is cooperating with the United States if the attacks against the Iranian oil industry continue,” the Iranian forces stated in a statement released by Reuters agency.
The statement raises the tone of the confrontation at a moment of maximum tension in the region, marked by the military escalation between the United States, Israel and Iran and by the risk of interruptions in the global energy supply.
The island of Jarg, key for Iranian oil
The American attack has been directed against the island of Jarg (Kharg Island), considered the main oil export node of Iran. From this facility a significant part of Iranian crude oil destined for international markets, especially towards Asia, leaves.
Trump justified the operation as a response to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important maritime routes for the transport of oil and gas.
The U.S. president has already warned that he will order new bombings against the island if Tehran maintains restrictions on maritime traffic in the area.
Energy escalation in the midst of war
The Iranian threat opens a new front in the war, now focused on the security of the energy infrastructures of the Persian Gulf, where some of the world's largest oil companies operate.
Analysts fear that an attack against energy facilities or oil tankers in the region could trigger a global energy crisis, since through the Strait of Hormuz transits around the 20% of the oil consumed on the planet.