US President Donald Trump said on Friday the United States may attack Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain facility “very soon,” repeating an earlier warning about the underground site.
The comments renewed pressure between Washington and Tehran and pushed crude oil prices higher as traders weighed the risk of wider disruption to Middle East supplies.
Pickaxe Mountain, known in Persian as Kuh-e Kolang Gazla, sits near Iran’s Natanz nuclear complex. Western analysts have tracked construction at the deeply buried location, which they believe is designed to withstand aerial bombardment.
Oil markets reacted to the threat, with crude settling higher on the session as fresh tension between the two governments raised concern over the security of shipments through the region.
Trump has issued a series of escalating warnings toward Tehran this year. In July he said he was close to a decision on a large-scale strike, one of several statements pointing to possible military action against Iranian nuclear sites.
Iran has repeatedly rejected US threats and defended its nuclear program as peaceful. Tehran has warned that any attack on its territory would draw retaliation.
The standoff has kept energy markets sensitive to statements from both capitals. Any confrontation near the Strait of Hormuz, through which a large share of global crude passes, carries the potential to lift prices further.
Trump did not specify a timeline for any operation or detail what military assets might be involved. US officials have not confirmed operational planning tied to his remarks.
Diplomatic channels between Washington and Tehran have remained strained, with no scheduled talks announced to address the nuclear dispute.