President Trump warned the U.S. would "bomb" Oman if it "gets in the way" of talks with Iran, as the 60-day U.S.-Iran ceasefire expires with no deal in sight. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has slowed to a near-standstill, and Brent crude and WTI both edged lower on Monday.
President Donald Trump said on Monday the United States would bomb Oman if the Gulf nation "gets in the way" of negotiations with Iran, as Washington's 60-day ceasefire with Tehran expires with no official deal in sight. According to Fox News: "If Oman gets in the way, we'll bomb the s— out of them."
Oman has been negotiating with Tehran over reopening the Strait of Hormuz to commercial transit while the U.S. maintains its blockade of Iranian ports. A Fox News reporter, Trey Yingst, said he had asked Trump about the parallel talks between Iran and Oman over control of the strait before the president responded with the threat.
Trump also said informal talks are underway with Iran's Revolutionary Guard but insisted the U.S. is in no rush to strike a deal, and he repeated that Iran must give up any nuclear weapons capability. Oman previously facilitated the back-channel talks that led to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged that talks between Iran and Oman had progressed, though he confirmed as of August 5 that no final agreement had been reached.
Hormuz traffic grinds to a halt
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz slowed to a near-halt over the weekend ahead of the ceasefire's expiry. Only five cargo ships passed through the waterway on Saturday, with none registered on Sunday, down from 31 vessels the previous weekend. Overall transit volume is down 90% since the war began on February 28, through a passage that normally carries about a fifth of the world's oil.
Oil prices ticked lower Monday as the standoff continued: Brent crude futures fell 0.15% to $88.45 a barrel, while WTI crude declined 0.74% to $81.79.
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi insisted the strait would remain under Iranian command, while Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said the two sides do not currently have anything resembling a ceasefire, according to Iranian state-linked outlet Shahrara News.
Sources: CNBC, Financial Times, Crypto Briefing
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