US President Donald Trump threatened, left open the possibility of attacking, or actually attacked 15 countries during his two terms in office, roughly one out of every 13 countries in the world, according to a CNN report.
Trump added Oman to that list on Wednesday, warning that the country could face US military action if it tries to control the Strait of Hormuz along with Iran, the report said.
“Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we’ll have to blow ‘em up,” Trump said during a White House Cabinet meeting.
The remarks appeared to be made casually, rather than as part of a formal policy announcement, but it fits a broader pattern in Trump’s foreign policy, in which threats of force have become a recurring feature, it noted.
Oman is at least the 15th country Trump has either threatened to attack, declined to rule out attacking, or actually attacked during his presidency.
Nearly all of those cases have taken place in the first 16 months of his second term, although some span both terms.
So far this term, Trump has launched strikes in seven countries: Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen. Some of those countries were also targeted during his first term.
That total does not include strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, which have targeted nearly 60 vessels and killed more than 190 people, the report said.
Trump has also threatened or left open the possibility of strikes against others during his current term, including Canada, Colombia, Cuba, the Danish territory of Greenland, Mexico, Panama, and Oman, it added.
During his first term, he also threatened Mexico and North Korea.
The threats and strikes vary in nature. Some, including strikes in Iraq, were narrowly aimed at terrorist targets rather than the country’s government. Other threats were less direct, with Trump simply refusing to rule out military action.
Still, the figures show how often Trump has invoked the possibility of force.
The countries he has threatened or attacked account for about one out of every 11 people in the world, meaning a significant share of the global population has had reason to consider the possibility of US military action under Trump, according to the report.
The Middle East has been a particular focus. Trump has now threatened or targeted five countries in the region: Iran, Iraq, Oman, Syria, and Yemen.
The report noted that his threats and attacks have also covered four of the world’s six populated continents: Africa, Asia, North America, and South America.
He has also technically threatened a European country, Denmark, by discussing the possibility of taking Greenland, a Danish territory in North America.
In several cases, Trump’s comments have gone beyond military threats and into possible territorial expansion.
Of the 15 countries he has threatened or attacked, five have been identified by Trump as possible additions to the United States or targets for US control: Canada, Cuba, Greenland, Panama, specifically the Panama Canal, and Venezuela.
