President Trump has privately told aides he could end the U.S.-Iran war without a nuclear agreement if Tehran fully reopens the Strait of Hormuz, the Wall Street Journal reported. Iran is countering with a longer list of demands, including compensation and sanctions relief, while oil and bitcoin stay sensitive to any breakthrough.
President Donald Trump has privately told senior aides he could end the U.S.-Iran war without securing a nuclear agreement, provided Tehran fully reopens the Strait of Hormuz, the Wall Street Journal reported Aug. 9, citing U.S. officials. The White House has not confirmed the shift, and its most recent Iran statement still insists Tehran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon.
Iran's demands complicate the Hormuz exit
Iran is seeking billions of dollars in U.S. payments, the withdrawal of American forces from the region, and an end to the U.S. naval blockade, the Journal reported. Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is demanding compensation for U.S. attacks, while Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, secretary of Iran's top security body, wants sanctions relief, freed Iranian assets and an end to U.S. military pressure on Iran and its allies, Reuters separately reported.
Araqchi said an Iran-Oman shipping agreement is in final stages, but that completing it alone will not reopen the strait, and that Iran and the U.S. remain outside direct talks. A U.S. official told Reuters that Washington would lift its blockade of Iranian ports once commercial shipping resumes without impediments.
Trump's public nuclear line has not changed
Publicly, Trump has not shifted position. His July 28 White House statement maintained Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon and warned that U.S. forces could strike additional sites if diplomacy fails. Privately, the Journal reported, Trump believes Tehran may be unable to rebuild its nuclear program during his presidency after earlier U.S. strikes damaged major facilities, and that U.S. intelligence could detect any renewed work, with further military action serving as a deterrent.
A White House official told the Journal that the administration considers its military objectives complete and is focused on restoring energy flows through Hormuz. Domestic politics matter too: Trump is reportedly prepared to wait through the talks as long as gasoline prices stay manageable, with the U.S. national average at $4.02 a gallon on Saturday, up from $3.16 a year earlier, less than three months before the midterm elections.
Oil and bitcoin stay tied to the outcome
Most Gulf stock markets ended Sunday subdued as investors awaited clarity on the Oman-Iran arrangement. Brent crude settled Friday at $83.55 a barrel, up 1.3%.
Bitcoin was trading near $65,184 on Sunday, though there is no evidence the report alone drove the move, especially with U.S. markets closed. Still, the war has repeatedly fed crypto risk sentiment through oil prices, inflation expectations and broader geopolitical risk: bitcoin fell below $64,000 on July 31 as renewed fighting lifted oil. It then moved back above $64,000 as Hormuz-deal expectations improved.
The strait carried about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the current disruption, according to Reuters.
Washington wants shipping restored before lifting its blockade; Iran wants concessions first. Reopening Hormuz appears to be the most tangible off-ramp available to Washington, though whether it ends the war depends on published terms and how both sides sequence their concessions.
Source: crypto.news
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