TEHRAN- An economic expert, referring to the recent statements and threats by the US President against the Iranian nation, attributed these positions to behavioral instability and a lack of a clear strategy on the American side. He emphasized that the management of the Strait of Hormuz and recent war developments have exposed the global energy market and the economies of European and industrialized countries to serious inflationary pressures.

In an interview with IRNA, Hamidreza Jahani, commenting on Trump's recent threat to target the country's vital infrastructure, including bridges and power plants, and to "take Iran back to the Stone Age," stated: "What has happened during the recent aggression by the American-Zionist enemy, and what all the world's media now acknowledge, is that the US President's personality is unstable and marked by behavioral distortion."

He added: "Today we see that Trump adopts different positions at different times; sometimes he tweets something, and a few hours later in an official speech he expresses a different stance, and we also see frequent changes in his diplomatic behavior."

The economic expert continued: "Trump's positions and statements must be analyzed within an overall process, and our view should not be piecemeal or momentary, because in recent weeks we have seen several times that on one hand he speaks of military interventions and severe attacks and threatens Iran's economic and livelihood infrastructure, and on the other hand he talks about progress in negotiations!"

Jahani, referring to the intensification of Trump's threats in recent days, said: "Fortunately, the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, with a 'tit-for-tat' approach, have delivered firm and deterrent reciprocal responses — for example, after the attack on the South Pars complex, the other side dared not continue its actions."

He added: "In my opinion, given Trump's recent remarks, he finds himself in a situation where he is looking for an exit window and an end to the war, but he has no clear solution. Therefore, he has begun using deceptive rhetoric and contradictory statements."

Jahani stated: "The important point for us is that while maintaining the deterrence equation, we must also put preemptive actions on our agenda. As we have seen, over two days three major steel complexes in the country were attacked — while the steel industry is one of the main infrastructures for the country's economic and industrial development, and targeting it could slow down Iran's future economic progress."

This economic expert emphasized: "It is essential that the armed forces and strategic policymakers of the country move toward preemptive actions against the other side's infrastructure. Overall, Trump's remarks must be seen within a general framework, and a piecemeal analysis is not correct, because his behavior and speech lack the necessary consistency, and even some American media have stated that he does not have accurate knowledge of the field situation."

He added: "In fact, his statements are far removed from the realities of the war on the ground. What matters is the resistance and steadfastness of the Iranian people; their presence and endurance have caused the declared goals of the US and Israel not to be achieved. It now seems that their list of military targets has largely run out, which is why they have moved toward targeting infrastructure such as the Karaj bridge or steel complexes to slow down the country's industrial and economic progress in the future. Naturally, confronting this approach requires deterrent and preemptive measures."

Jahani, in response to a question about reports that Germany's economic growth has nearly halved since the beginning of the year, and given the protests of some European countries and the issue of managing the Strait of Hormuz, what effects this trend will have on the economies of European powers, said: "The important point is that Iran's main trump card in this war has been the smart management of the Strait of Hormuz. With the courage and bravery of the country's naval forces, intelligent control of this strategic passage has been established. About 30 to 35 percent of the world's energy passes through the Strait of Hormuz, and this has caused global financial markets to face a sharp increase in energy prices."

This economic expert added: "In some transactions, oil prices even reached around $170. Such an increase puts severe inflationary pressure on the industrial infrastructure of various countries, and on the social side, with the rise in gasoline and diesel prices, direct pressure will be exerted on the people of European and industrialized countries."

The university professor noted: "A noteworthy point is that European countries were lucky in one respect: this war occurred after the winter season. If such a crisis had happened in winter, given Europe's heavy dependence on gas imports, the energy crisis could have created far more difficult conditions for them."

Jahani emphasized: "In my opinion, the inflationary wave caused by rising fuel prices will soon appear in other markets and economic goods in Europe, the United States, and even East Asia. Signs of it are already visible in countries like India and Australia, where the supply of gasoline, LPG, and fuel has encountered serious problems."

The economic expert added: "On the other hand, the steadfastness of the Iranian people and armed forces plays a decisive role in this battle because we saw that in the early weeks of the war, under pressure from the US government, oil futures contracts for April delivery were sold at much lower prices — around $60–65 billion — in financial markets and paper oil transactions."

He concluded: "Now, if over the next one or two weeks the price of oil remains above $100–110, financial institutions that sold oil at around $75–80 will be forced to enter the market to secure physical delivery — an issue that could cause a new leap in the oil financial market. As we are now seeing in the spot market, oil prices are even trading at levels above $150."

EF/MA