“I’d go in and take it.” The “it” is Kharg Island and the “I” is Donald Trump, but his comment on the critical Iranian oil terminal was made back in 1988 when he was just a businessman. Four decades later the US president is mulling whether to make good on that old boast in what would be a major escalation of the US-Israeli war with the Islamic Republic. Now, as then, the idea that capturing the site would somehow subdue Tehran is fanciful.

Let’s put aside whether taking it — and, crucially, holding it — is feasible. Back in the late ‘80s Trump thought it would easy: “One bullet shot at one of our men or ships and I’d do a number on Kharg Island.” After bombing military targets on the island earlier this month, he’s keeping his intentions on whether to go further to himself. The White House seems to think the terminal could be a bargaining chip to force Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. “I may have a plan or I may not,” Trump said on Friday when asked about capturing Kharg.

© Bloomberg