Why Hasn't Trump Mentioned Iran's Oil?

"In 1953, when President Dwight Eisenhower authorized the CIA to topple Iran's elected prime minister, the American public was told a familiar story: Communism was creeping in, the Cold War demanded vigilance, and the United States could not afford another Moscow ally. But beneath the neat narrative of containment was a more tangible obsession-oil."

"President Trump has rarely considered a foreign conflict without musing, sometimes bluntly, about what the United States might take in return for intervening: Iraqi oil. Syrian oil. Venezuelan oil. Seizing valuable petroleum or other natural resources as repayment for American blood was a central tenet of Trump's worldview long before he took office."

"Iran has nearly 209 billion barrels of proven crude-oil reserves, making up about 12 percent of the world's total. Seizing Iranian oil, and combining it with what could come from Venezuela, would add to U.S. energy dominance and deprive China of a vital supply of fuel. But the president has resisted discussing it, at least publicly."

The United States has long pursued military intervention in Iran under the guise of geopolitical strategy, but oil has consistently been the underlying motivation. In 1953, the CIA toppled Iran's elected prime minister while publicly citing Communist threats. Decades later, President Trump has openly discussed seizing oil from Iraq, Syria, and Venezuela as compensation for American military involvement. However, regarding Iran's substantial 209 billion barrels of proven crude reserves—representing 12 percent of global supplies—Trump has notably refrained from publicly advocating seizure, despite Iran's oil representing an unprecedented opportunity for U.S. energy dominance and denying resources to China. This restraint marks a departure from his typical rhetoric about natural resources as leverage.

Read at The Atlantic