A resurfaced interview from 1988 has drawn fresh attention after US President Donald Trump ordered strikes on Iran’s strategic Kharg Island, revealing that he had spoken about attacking the same target nearly four decades ago.
The comments came from an interview Trump gave to The Guardian when he was a New York businessman. In the interview, Trump argued that Washington should take a tougher line against Iran and respond forcefully to actions in the Persian Gulf.
“It’d be harsh on Iran. They’ve been beating us psychologically, making us look like a bunch of fools,” Trump said. “One bullet shot at one of our men or ships and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it.”
Trump also suggested that Iran was emboldened despite being engaged in a difficult war with Iraq at the time.
“Iran can’t even beat Iraq, yet they push the United States around,” he said. “It’d be good for the world to take them on.”
The decades-old remarks resurfaced after the White House shared a snippet of the interview following US military strikes on Kharg Island, which hosts the main terminal for Iran’s crude exports.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt circulated the excerpt, saying the president’s views on Iran had remained consistent for decades.
President Trump has been remarkably consistent his entire life on Iran. Anyone who says otherwise has not been paying attention. https://t.co/Cd2IU3Nb6Y— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) March 14, 2026
“President Trump has been remarkably consistent his entire life on Iran,” she said. “Anyone who says otherwise has not been paying attention.”
Trump recently said US forces had “obliterated” military targets on Kharg Island, located about 30 kilometres off the Iranian mainland in the Persian Gulf.
The island plays a central role in Iran’s oil trade. It handles the vast majority of the country’s crude exports and is widely considered one of Tehran’s most important economic lifelines.
Because of this strategic importance, Kharg Island has long been viewed as a critical node in global energy markets and a potential flashpoint during periods of conflict involving Iran.
While the reported strikes targeted military facilities rather than oil terminals, Trump warned that Iran’s energy infrastructure could also be hit if Tehran continues to interfere with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The narrow waterway linking the Persian Gulf with global shipping routes is one of the world’s most important energy corridors, carrying a significant share of global oil supplies.
Iran’s military has responded with sharp warnings, saying oil and energy infrastructure linked to companies cooperating with the United States could be “destroyed and turned into a pile of ashes” if Iranian facilities are attacked.
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