Oil, drones, fire - and a president who lies and escalates at the same time

The world is supposed to say thank you, it is said from Washington. While tanker prices explode, gas terminals burn and drones strike refineries, this sentence sounds like it comes from a different reality. In fact, the US government is currently trying to contain an energy crisis that it helped trigger itself.

The world, our ungrateful allies in Europe, even parts of our own press should say one thing to President Trump: thank you. (For what? - editorial note)

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks openly about Washington examining new steps to stabilize the market. On the table is the idea of releasing Iranian oil that has already been shipped. Around 140 million barrels could become available at short notice. At the same time, the administration is considering tapping the US strategic petroleum reserves. This is not a sign of strength, but an admission: the situation has gotten completely out of control.

Prices react immediately. Brent crude jumps by almost ten percent to 118 dollars per barrel. In Europe, gas prices at times surge by 30 percent. Markets fall, the STOXX 600 drops, the DAX declines, in Asia prices also move downward. The economic consequences are already running parallel to the military events.

South Pars, Iran’s largest natural gas field in the world, is burning after Israeli-American attacks have put central processing facilities out of operation. The damage to people and environment is also here not at all foreseeable

The trigger is a chain of attacks. Israel strikes the Iranian gas field South Pars, the core of the country’s energy supply. Iran responds with strikes against infrastructure across the Gulf. Qatar reports damage at the Ras Laffan terminal, the largest LNG facility in the world. In Kuwait, refineries burn after drone attacks. In Saudi Arabia, a projectile crashes into an export terminal. In the United Arab Emirates, debris from intercepted missiles hits energy facilities.

At the same time, Donald Trump declares that he does not want further attacks on Iranian energy targets. That contradicts what happened before. Because the attack on South Pars was known, coordinated, intended and politically backed. Coordinated with Israel, not just since yesterday. It was meant to send a message, especially in connection with the Strait of Hormuz. Now, after the response has come, restraint is suddenly supposed to apply. Trump does what he always does: lie to the world.

Hegseth: “We decided to share the ocean with Iran. We gave them the lower half.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth paints a completely different picture. Unreal, concerning, politically untenable. He says the US is winning “clearly and on its own terms.” More than 7,000 targets have been attacked in Iran, more than 120 ships destroyed or damaged. Iranian military ports are said to be “paralyzed.” At the same time, he dismisses any discussion of a possible expansion of the war as secondary. Reality shows the opposite. The conflict has long since engulfed the entire region. In Washington, Tulsi Gabbard makes clear how unclear the situation has become: Iran’s new leader Mojtaba Khamenei was seriously injured after an Israeli attack, decisions at the top are therefore currently difficult to assess. At the same time, she describes a clear separation of war objectives - Israel targets leadership, the US targets military and missiles. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister Faisal bin Farhan warns after missiles over Riyadh of military consequences and declares that the last trust in Tehran has been destroyed.

Representative Carson: Is there any evidence that Iran planned a preemptive attack on the United States?

Tulsi Gabbard: The answer to this question must be reserved for a non-public hearing. Ultimately, it is the president’s responsibility to assess what constitutes an imminent threat.

The World Trade Organization raises the alarm: even before the current energy shocks, growth in goods trade for 2026 had fallen to 1.9 percent - after 4.6 percent the year before. If oil and gas prices remain high, a further drop to only 1.4 percent is likely. Energy dependent regions such as Europe and Asia would be hit particularly hard, where trade would decline significantly more. Producer countries, on the other hand, could benefit in the short term because higher revenues support their import capacity. Energy prices thus become the decisive factor for global trade.

Europe is also reacting. France’s President Emmanuel Macron warns of an escalation that will have long-term consequences for global energy supply. If key facilities are destroyed, the crisis will not end with the war. It will stretch over years. Iran meanwhile announces further attacks. Any further attack on its own facilities will be answered - also against the infrastructure of opponents and their allies. The Strait of Hormuz remains the most dangerous point. Europe and Japan increase pressure on Tehran. Keir Starmer, together with the heads of government from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan, declares that attacks on shipping as well as oil and gas facilities must stop immediately. At the same time, they call for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important routes for the global energy market. The states signal willingness to contribute themselves to securing the passage. Concrete military steps, however, are still at a very early stage.

At the same time, it becomes clear how far this war reaches. Tehran was and is currently marked by massive attacks, destroyed buildings and growing fear. Military targets are often located in residential areas. The line between front and everyday life hardly exists anymore.

And while governments talk about markets, reserves and strategies, the war also hits those who document it. In southern Lebanon, two journalists are injured during a live report. Steven Sweeney is standing in front of the camera when an impact occurs just meters away. Cameraman Ali Reda Sbeiti is also hit. Both survive with minor injuries. The location lies near the Litani River, where Israeli attacks on infrastructure are taking place. Several teams are reporting from there.

Journalist and colleague Steven Sweeney as well as cameraman Ali Reda Sbeiti were fortunately only lightly injured during a live report in southern Lebanon

These images do not match the statements from Washington. They show what this war really is: a conflict that spreads, shakes economic systems and even hits those who make it visible.

Trump wanted to write history. He has achieved that. Just not in the way it sounds in speeches.