LiveOil prices surge, stocks fall after Trump vows to hit Iran ‘extremely hard’

NATO chief to visit Washington next week as Trump threatens exit from alliance

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will visit Washington next week for what a spokesperson for the military alliance called a “long-planned visit” that comes after US President Donald Trump blasted European allies over differences on the Iran war.

No further details of the trip were immediately available.

Mr Trump said he was considering pulling the US out of the Western military alliance due to the refusal of European members to send ships to unblock the Strait of Hormuz.

In remarks on Wednesday to allies gathered for an Easter lunch at the White House, he criticised France and the United Kingdom, among other US allies, as a “paper tiger".

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PHOTO: REUTERS

Australian state triggers emergency powers amid fuel crisis

Western Australia invoked emergency powers to force fuel suppliers to provide detailed information on their supply chains, as the nation seeks to manage an ongoing shortage spurred by panic-buying in the wake of the war in Iran.

The state government activated the powers under the Fuel, Energy and Power Resources Act after several companies failed to provide specific data and information on fuel shipments, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

Western Australia is a major global exporter of iron ore, gold and other minerals, as well as of agricultural products including grains and livestock, all of which are reliant on diesel to run their operations.

Most of Australia’s fuels are imported, and the conflict in the Middle East has squeezed global supplies, sending prices at the pump to records.

Iran’s military warns of ‘more destructive’ attacks until adversaries’ ‘surrender’

Tehran will press on with the Middle East war until the United States and Israel face “permanent regret and surrender”, the spokesperson of its armed forces’ unified command said on Thursday, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

The threat followed comments by US President Donald Trump that Washington would hit Iran “extremely hard” within weeks, although Iran was “essentially decimated” with the United States on track to achieve its military objectives.

Mr Ebrahim Zolfaqari, spokesperson of the Khatam al-Anbiya central headquarters, responded that US and Israeli assessments of Iran’s military capabilities were “incomplete”.

Iran would step up its military actions, with “more crushing, broader and more destructive” attacks in store for its adversaries, he added.

Indonesia, Malaysia roll out remote work to conserve energy

Indonesian ministries, state agencies and regional administrations are ready to enforce the newly announced remote work policy for civil servants as the government seeks to conserve energy supplies amid soaring global prices.

The remote work policy was announced by Coordinating Economy Minister Airlangga Hartarto on the sidelines of a presidential visit to Seoul, South Korea on Tuesday night, as part of energy-savings measures called the “eight-point work culture transformation policy”.

Civil servants at the central and regional levels will begin working from home every Friday starting this week, with exemptions for sectors deemed essential. The private sector is encouraged to consider similar arrangements.

The policy is expected to save 65 trillion rupiah (S$4.8 billion) and ministries and regional administrations were quick to welcome it.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim also announced on Thursday that the country will introduce a work‑from‑home policy for ministries, agencies, statutory bodies and government‑linked companies starting April 15 to conserve energy.

“The Cabinet has agreed to the work‑from‑home policy. It aims to reduce fuel consumption and ensure a stable energy supply,” Mr Anwar said during a special briefing late on Wednesday.

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Lebanon’s Hezbollah claims drone, rocket attacks on northern Israel

Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said its fighters launched drones and rockets at northern Israel on Thursday, with the Israeli military’s Home Front Command saying air raid sirens were activated across the border.

In separate statements, the Iran-backed group claimed rocket fire targeting Israeli troops in border areas and a drone attack targeting a village.

Sirens were activated in those areas, according to the Israeli Home Front Command, with no reports of any casualties or damage.

Israel earlier said it responded to three missile attacks from Iran, with police saying that officers were called to “several” impact sites in central Israel after the first attack.

Top Democrat Schumer calls Trump speech ‘rambling’ and ‘disjointed’

Senate Democrat leader Chuck Schumer, in a post on social media platform X, blasted US President Donald Trump’s address to the American public on the war in Iran as “rambling, disjointed, and pathetic”.

In his address, Mr Trump defended his handling of the month-old war and said that the US military was nearing completion of its mission, warning that the US would bomb the Islamic republic “back to the Stone Age”.

“Donald Trump’s actions in Iran will be considered one of the greatest policy blunders in the history of our country, failing to articulate objectives, alienating allies, and ignoring the kitchen table problems Americans are facing,” Mr Schumer wrote.

“He is completely unfit to be Commander-in-Chief and the whole world knows it.”

Another top-ranking Democrat, House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, also posted on X, saying that the American people are “sick and tired of the chaos, high costs and extreme Republican agenda”.

“Donald Trump must end his reckless war of choice in the Middle East. Now,” he said.

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES/AFP

Australia PM says Iran war objectives met, ‘not clear’ what more to achieve

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday that the original objectives of the war in Iran had been met and it was not clear what more remained to be achieved.

Speaking after US President Donald Trump’s speech on his view of the war, Mr Albanese called for de-escalation, noting that US-Israeli attacks had degraded Iran’s air force, navy and military industrial base.

“Now those objectives have been realised it is not clear what more needs to be achieved or what the end point looks like,” he said.

“What is clear is that the longer the war goes on the more significant the impact on the global economy will be.”

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French navy chief says China will have to engage more in Strait of Hormuz discussion

China will at one point have to engage more directly on how to restore oil traffic flows in the Strait of Hormuz because the number of vessels it has going through is probably insufficient, France’s navy chief said on Wednesday.

Admiral Nicolas Vaujour said France was working to bring a number of countries around the table at a political level first to determine the conditions under which the strait could be reopened in a lasting way.

He said militaries were also assessing whether mines had been laid and would need to be cleared.

“This is obviously not a question for France alone. It concerns all partner countries, Gulf states, the United States and other European countries as well,” he added.

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Israel says it is intercepting an Iran missile attack, first after Trump speech

Israel’s military said its air defences were responding to an Iranian missile attack on Thursday, shortly after US President Donald Trump delivered an address to the American public about the war in Iran.

It said in a statement it had “identified missiles launched from Iran towards the territory of the State of Israel” for the third time in just over three hours, adding that “defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat”.

Air raid sirens sounded across northern Israel, according to the military’s Home Front Command, and there were no immediate reports of any casualties or damage.

PHOTO: AFP

Trump speech may leave the public ‘more confused’, analysts tell BBC

In comments made on the BBC, Mr Ivo Daalder, former US ambassador to Nato, says Mr Donald Trump’s speech was not clear on why the US is still carrying out attacks in Iran if its nuclear capabilities and military have been destroyed, as the US president claims.

“I don't see why we think we should be safer... and I think the American public have a similar sense of doubt,” says Mr Daalder.

He also expects Mr Trump to come out on social media strongly against Nato allies and repeat threats to pull out of the alliance, which he did not do during his address.

Ms Melissa Toufanian, a senior adviser to former US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, also tells BBC that she thinks American audiences would likely be left “more confused” about the war after Mr Trump’s speech.

“I don't think there’s a single American who was watching that speech today who is going to feel like there is a clear plan, like there is a clear timeline, that we are safer and more secure," she says.

PHOTO: REUTERS