Trump Declares Iran Ceasefire 'Over' After U.S. Strikes

President Trump declared the U.S.-Iran ceasefire finished in Ankara after American forces struck more than 80 Iranian targets following Strait of Hormuz tanker attacks.

U.S. Central Command struck more than 80 Iranian military sites on July 7, targeting air defenses, coastal missile systems, and over 60 IRGC small boats.
Trump told NATO summit reporters "I think it's over," while leaving his negotiating team authorized to pursue a permanent settlement.
Brent crude surged 5.6% to above $78 a barrel; the U.S. simultaneously revoked the Treasury waiver permitting Iranian oil sales under the June accord.

Lead

ANKARA/WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump declared the six-week-old ceasefire with Iran finished on Tuesday at the annual NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, hours after American forces struck more than 80 Iranian military targets overnight in retaliation for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. "I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them anymore," Trump told reporters on the summit sidelines, though he left his negotiating team authorized to pursue a permanent settlement.

What Happened

The immediate trigger was a coordinated IRGC maritime offensive on July 6. A Qatari-flagged LNG tanker, the Al Rekayat, and the Saudi supertanker Wedyan were struck by projectiles in the Strait; the Al Rekayat sustained an engine-room fire that threatened an explosion. A third commercial vessel was hit less than 24 hours later.

U.S. Central Command responded by launching what it described as "a series of powerful strikes against Iran." The operation targeted more than 80 sites — including Iranian air defense systems, coastal surveillance networks, surface-to-air missile batteries, anti-ship cruise missile emplacements, drone launch facilities, and more than 60 IRGC small boats.

The Trump administration simultaneously revoked a 60-day Treasury Department license — one of the central concessions extended to Tehran under the June 17 Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding — that had authorized the legal sale of Iranian oil on international markets.

Iran's Response

The IRGC confirmed retaliatory strikes on American military installations across the Gulf, launching ballistic missiles and drones at the U.S. Ali Al Salem air base in Kuwait and at Port Salman in Bahrain, headquarters of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet. Iran's military claimed to have struck eight American military infrastructure sites across both countries, asserting the U.S. offensive constituted a direct violation of the 14-point Memorandum of Understanding.

Iran's Foreign Ministry described the strikes as "brutal attacks" in violation of the MoU and the UN Charter. Tehran simultaneously threatened a "complete halt" to negotiations, though a senior Washington official stated the U.S. expected talks to continue.

Market Reaction

Energy markets reacted sharply. Brent crude surged 5.6% to trade above $78 a barrel — a pronounced reversal from pre-crisis levels near $74, though still below the above-$104 spike recorded in May. U.S. benchmark crude (WTI) gained 5.8%, reclaiming $74.55 a barrel.

U.S. equity index futures declined as the headlines crossed. Defense contractors Lockheed Martin (LMT), Northrop Grumman (NOC), and RTX Corporation (RTX) traded erratically; the shares had previously sold off on ceasefire optimism in June when the Islamabad agreement was signed. Tanker equities and broader risk assets also came under pressure amid the escalating exchange.

Strategic Context

The July 7 strikes represent the most severe military exchange since the Islamabad Memorandum formalized a 60-day negotiating framework on June 17. The war itself opened on February 28, when large-scale U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and senior official Ali Larijani, triggering a sustained conflict across the region.

The Islamabad agreement had already produced tangible economic relief. Brent crude fell roughly 20% from its May peak above $104 to near pre-war levels, and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz had restored flow through a waterway that carries approximately 20% of global seaborne oil trade. The revocation of Iranian oil-sales waivers directly reverses that central concession and removes a key incentive Tehran had to maintain the ceasefire.

Persian Gulf states hosting U.S. forces — including Kuwait and Bahrain — are now active theaters of Iranian retaliation. That reality complicates the regional security calculus for Washington's Gulf partners and raises the diplomatic stakes for any renewed ceasefire framework.

What Comes Next

Trump's Ankara statement did not formally foreclose negotiations. His team retains authorization to continue discussions, preserving a path to a revised or successor agreement. However, Iran's threat to halt talks, combined with the reimposition of oil sanctions, sharply narrows the near-term de-escalation corridor.

The viability of the Islamabad MoU framework will likely be determined over the next 30 days. If the Strait of Hormuz remains contested, the cascading effects on global energy supply chains, freight insurance premiums, and inflation across major oil-importing economies will accelerate materially. Whether Trump's declaration marks a permanent rupture or a reset of the negotiating table remains the defining variable for markets and regional stability alike.

Outlook

The collapse of the Iran ceasefire on July 7–8 represents the most significant breakdown in the post-war diplomatic process. Brent crude's sharp reversal, the reimposition of Iranian oil sanctions, and IRGC strikes on U.S. installations in Kuwait and Bahrain all signal a period of elevated geopolitical risk. The trajectory of talks — and of the Strait of Hormuz — will determine whether the conflict stabilizes at its current intensity or enters a new phase of escalation with global economic consequences.