US President Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to “blow up” Oman, a longtime ally of the United States, apparently mistaking it for Iran.
The remarks were made during a televised cabinet meeting at the White House'
Trump, who is 79, also confused Iran with Venezuela later in the same speech.
"Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we'll have to blow them up,” Trump stated during the address.
The president was responding to questions about a potential scenario where Oman and Iran might jointly control the strategic Strait of Hormuz. Trump dismissed the idea.
“The Strait will remain open for everyone," he promised. “Nobody’s going to control it. It’s international waters."
The 79-year-old leader also claimed that the US economy continues to thrive despite “the conflict with Venezuela, which no longer has a navy or an air force.”
Such descriptions of a militarily wiped-out nation have typically been reserved for Iran in Trump’s past rhetoric.
This isn’t the first instance of the former president mixing up countries. He has previously referred to Albania instead of Armenia and Iceland in place of Greenland.
