Ghalibaf, who has emerged as a figurehead since the start of the Middle East war, said Trump "divides the country into two groups: hardliners and moderates, and then immediately talks about a naval blockade to force Iran into submission through economic pressure and internal discord," state TV reported.
"The enemy has entered a new phase and wants to activate economic pressure and internal division through naval blockade and media hype to weaken or even make us collapse from within," he said.
He called for "maintaining unity" as the only solution.
Meanwhile, Trump said Tehran should "get smart soon" and capitulate to Washington's demands.
"Iran can't get their act together... They better get smart soon," Trump posted on his social media platform, above a mocked-up picture of himself toting a rifle in front of explosions wrecking a desert fortress and the slogan: "No more Mr. Nice Guy!"
According to the administration official, speaking to AFP, Trump discussed with the oil executives "steps we could take to continue the current blockade for months if needed and minimise impact on American consumers".
The White House official told the AFP that the US President frequently meets with energy executives to gather feedback on both domestic and international energy markets, covering topics like domestic production, Venezuela’s progress, oil futures, natural gas, and shipping.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hosted the meeting, with Vice President JD Vance and Chief of Staff Susie Wiles also in attendance. US oil giant Chevron confirmed its CEO, Mike Wirth, participated in the meeting.
Global crude prices soared on Wednesday following media reports that Trump was considering extending the blockade of Iran. Brent crude jumped above $115 a barrel, and US benchmark WTI neared $105.
Not bound by maritime law
Tehran said that any disruption to maritime transport in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz directly and "its consequences lie with the US, whose unlawful actions endanger international navigation."
Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations said Tehran is not a party to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and is therefore not bound by its provisions.
It stressed that as a key coastal state, Iran has the legal authority to take necessary and proportionate measures to counter security threats and prevent the Strait of Hormuz from being used for hostile or military purposes.
The statement added that Iran reserves the right to take “appropriate measures” in the strait, warning that lasting stability in the region depends on ending aggression against Iran.
The US-Israeli war began on February 28, prompting Iran to begin restricting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation.
A two-week ceasefire was reached on April 8, mediated by Pakistan, which successfully halted active US-Israeli aerial bombardments and Iranian missile strikes. However, the truce remains extremely fragile, with key issues -- such as Iran’s nuclear enrichment and the permanent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz -- still unresolved.
Following the collapse of high-level negotiations in Islamabad, led by Vice President JD Vance, the United States, seeking to maintain leverage without returning to full-scale kinetic warfare, imposed a counter-blockade on all Iranian ports on April 13.
Despite the ceasefire extension on April 21, tensions remain at a breaking point. Tehran has proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz on the condition that Washington lifts its naval blockade and ends the war, while notably pushing negotiations regarding its nuclear program to a later date -- a condition the White House appears poised to reject.
Seeking to finance its post-war recovery, Tehran has moved to enforce a transit-fee system for vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, as the US-Israeli war has caused catastrophic damage to Iran’s civilian and strategic infrastructure.
The Iranian Red Crescent and local authorities estimate that more than 132,000 civilian structures have been damaged or destroyed, including hospitals, bridges, universities, and major residential areas. The US and Israel have also killed at least 3,468 people, with direct economic losses exceeding $145 billion.
The UN Development Programme, meanwhile, warned that the war, which has sent the price of energy and fertiliser soaring, could plunge more than 30 million people into poverty in 160 countries. "It's development in reverse," UNDP chief Alexander De Croo told AFP.
The war has cost the US military $25 billion since it was launched in late February, a senior Pentagon official said Wednesday.
"We're spending about $25 billion. Most of that is in munitions," acting Pentagon comptroller Jules Hurst told lawmakers.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth later told the same congressional hearing that the estimated figure was less than $25 billion at this point.
During a White House state dinner on Tuesday, Trump told Britain's King Charles III and other guests that Iran had been "militarily defeated", and claimed that "Charles agrees with me even more than I do -- we're never going to let that opponent have a nuclear weapon."
US intelligence agencies, at the request of senior administration officials, are studying how Iran would respond if Trump were to declare a unilateral victory, two American officials and a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.
But an Iranian army spokesman Amir Akraminia told state TV on Tuesday that "we do not consider the war to be over", saying Tehran had "no trust in America".
"We have many cards that we have not yet used... new tools and methods of fighting based on the experiences of the past two wars, which will definitely allow us to respond to the enemy more decisively" should the fighting resume, Akraminia said.
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