Iran announced on Thursday that it would respond to any new attacks by Washington with "long, painful'strikes'" and reasserted control over the Strait of Hormuz. This complicates U.S. plans to form a coalition in order to reopen this?waterway. The 'vital sea channel' remains closed two months after the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. This has stifled 20% of world oil and gas supplies. This has caused global energy prices to surge and raised concerns about an economic recession. The conflict has reached a deadlock. A ceasefire has been in place since 8 April, but Iran is still blocking the Strait of Hormuz in response to the U.S. navy blockade against Iran's oil exports. This is the lifeline for the country. A U.S. official said that Donald Trump will receive a detailed briefing Thursday about plans to launch a new series of military strikes against Iran in order to force it to negotiate a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The U.S. has been considering such options for a long time, but the news of the planned briefing was first reported by the news site "Axios" late on Wednesday. This sparked a big increase in oil prices. Brent crude, the benchmark contract, reached more than $126 per barrel at one stage. Later, it dropped to about $114.

A senior Revolutionary Guards official claimed that any U.S. strike on Iran, no matter how limited, would lead to "long and painful" strikes on U.S. positions in the region.

Iranian media quoted Majid Moussi as saying: "We have seen what has happened to your regional base, and we will see it happen to your warships."

IRAN INTENDS TO MAINTAIN HOLD OVER THE STRAIT

In a letter to Iranians, the Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khmenei stated that Tehran will eliminate "the enemy's abuses of waterway" as part of a new management of strait. This indicates that Iran intends to maintain its control over the waterway.

He said that foreigners from a distance of thousands of kilometers had no place in the area except for at the bottom.

Since the start of the war on February 28, Brent prices have more than doubled, causing?inflation. Pump prices are now at politically painful levels around world.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned if the disruption brought on by the shutdown continued through the middle of the year, global growth and inflation would drop and tens and millions more people could be forced into extreme poverty and hunger.

"The longer the vital artery remains blocked, the more difficult it will be to reverse damage," he said in New York. Trump has a U.S. formal deadline of Friday to either end the war, or convince Congress to extend it. Analysts and congressional aides expect him either to notify Congress of his plans for a 30-day delay or ignore the deadline.

A VARIETY OF OPTIONS In addition to blocking all shipping except its own, Iran has launched drones and rockets against Israel and the United States. Bases, infrastructure and U.S. linked companies in Gulf states. Axios reported that another plan, to be shared with Trump, involves the use of ground forces to take control of part of Strait of Hormuz in order to reopen commercial shipping. Officials have confirmed that Trump may also consider extending the U.S. ban on Iran, or declaring an unilateral victory.

The State Department cable, which was sent to partner nations as a sign that the U.S. also envisaged a scenario in which hostilities would cease, invited them to join a coalition called Maritime Freedom Construct to allow ships to navigate the strait. The cable stated that the MFC was a "critical first step" in establishing a Middle East maritime security architecture after conflict.

France, Britain and others have discussed joining a coalition to open the Strait. However, they said that this would only be possible when the conflict is over.

LEBANON ISSUED

Abbas Araqchi, Iranian Foreign Minister and Nabih Brerri, Lebanese Speaker of Parliament held a telephone call Thursday to discuss the developments in Lebanon and around the region as well as the Islamabad negotiation process.

Araqchi stated that the Iran-U.S. agreement included a commitment to stop Israeli attacks against Lebanon. According to his Telegram?account, the ceasefire agreement will remain a major issue in any future processes. In Lebanon, a shaky truce is in place to limit clashes between Hezbollah and?Israel.

A Pakistani source told AFP that Pakistan, as a mediator, was trying to prevent escalation during the exchange of messages between the U.S. Trump said Iran could not have a nuke, but Tehran claims its nuclear ambitions were peaceful.

Iran's most recent offer to end the war will put aside any discussion about its nuclear program, until the conflict has been officially ended and the shipping issues have been resolved.

This did not satisfy Trump's request to address the nuclear issue from the beginning. Reporting by Bureaus; Writing by Keith Weir, Lincoln Fletcher, and Philippa Fletcher; Editing and rewriting by Neil Fullick Timothy Heritage Hugh Lawson

(source: Reuters)