Kharg Island handles almost all of Tehran’s crude exports
US President Donald Trump is weighing the possibility of seizing Iran’s offshore oil hub Kharg Island, Axios has reported, citing American officials familiar with the discussions. The outlet added that such a move would likely require a ground operation.
Kharg Island is a small coral reef island in the northern part of the Persian Gulf, located off Iran’s coast. Despite covering only about 20 square kilometers, it plays a crucial role in the Iranian economy. The tiny island, responsible for processing some 90% of the country’s crude exports, hosts a major oil storage facility with an estimated capacity of about 30 million barrels.
According to sources cited by Axios, the option of seizing Kharg Island is being considered if tankers remain effectively blocked in the Persian Gulf and regional oil exports continue to be disrupted.
The US and Israel began coordinated strikes on the Islamic Republic in late February, triggering Iran to launch retaliatory attacks across the region. The escalating crisis has effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about one-fifth of the world’s daily oil and gas supply. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has warned that vessels from countries it considers hostile would not be allowed to transit the strait. The developments have sent global crude prices up nearly 50% to about $120 a barrel.
One source told the outlet that as long as the blockade remains in place and shipments from the region are constrained, Trump “won’t be able to end the war, even if he wants to.”
Trump has not made a final decision on the seizure of Kharg Island, a senior White House official told Axios, adding that the president is weighing both the potential “big risks” and “big rewards.” The official stressed, however, that Trump “is not going to wait around and let the Iranians dictate the pace of the conflict.”
On Saturday night, Trump said that US forces had “obliterated every military target” on the island, claiming that all of them had been destroyed. The IRGC said that none of the oil infrastructure facilities on the island had been damaged.
Sources also told Axios that Trump is currently working on forming a coalition to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, with an announcement expected in the coming days. Over the weekend, the US president and senior administration officials reportedly held related discussions on the issue.
