Optimism was brimming in the United States as a senior official anticipated a potential agreement to reopen the crucial Strait of Hormuz, suggesting the deal could be finalized “today or tomorrow.”
With hopefulness resonating, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shared on CNBC that “there is a chance we may have a deal” in just a few short hours, a sentiment that aligned with President Donald Trump’s comments a day earlier.
Addressing the nation from the White House on Tuesday, Trump maintained his characteristic blend of diplomatic optimism and stern warnings, declaring this opportunity as Iran’s “last chance before decapitation.”
The conflict between Iran and the United States has persisted since February 28, following surprise assaults by the US and Israel. Although a ceasefire and an initial agreement were reached in the subsequent months, the quest for a lasting diplomatic resolution remains elusive.
Highlighting the ongoing tension, a merchant ship in Hormuz was struck by a projectile on Tuesday, causing a fire in its living quarters and leaving one crew member missing, underscoring the precariousness of the current situation.
The Strait of Hormuz, a key conduit for global oil and gas supplies, has been the spark for repeated returns to fighting.
Iran wants to maintain control over and charge tolls in the strait, powers it did not exercise before the war and which the US fiercely opposes.
In what has become a regular pattern, Trump last week threatened to hit Iran “very hard”, potentially with attacks against civilian infrastructure, only to pull back later, hinting that a deal was near.
But Iran’s foreign ministry denied negotiations with the US were taking place, even as Trump insisted they were happening “right now”.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the United States was involved in negotiations between Oman and Iran on increasing traffic through the Hormuz.
“There’s been progress made in those talks but not finality yet. We’re hoping that will happen very shortly,” he told journalists.
Deal or surrender
Qatar, which has been mediating negotiations, said that diplomatic efforts were ongoing but that no direct Iran-US talks were planned.
Its leader, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, spoke with Trump by phone on Wednesday, with the emir’s palace saying they discussed “efforts to de-escalate tensions between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran and to bring the two sides closer together”.
Trump had previously said he expected to know by Wednesday how the talks were going, “one way or the other”, but insisted “it’s not very complex”.
The US’ diplomatic goals include reopening Hormuz and the denuclearisation of Iran, which Trump allowed could “take a little while”.
The president had previously called Tehran “duplicitous” for saying it was not negotiating, adding on social media that a US counter-blockade of Iranian ports would stay in place “unless a Deal, or Total Surrender, is accomplished”.
More than five months into a war that has cost the US billions of dollars, Iran remains able to fire missiles and drones at US and allied targets in the region, as well as at commercial shipping.
Early on Wednesday, Britain’s maritime security agency UKMTO said an unnamed cargo vessel had been struck by an “unknown projectile” in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman.
Iran continues to impose an effective blockade on the strait and insists ships coordinate crossings with it.
Red Sea attack
The disruptions in the Hormuz have only placed greater importance on shipping lanes through the Red Sea, where Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have declared a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Red Sea port of Yanbu has enabled it to keep up shipments to global markets by circumventing the Hormuz entirely.
But since the Houthis announced their blockade, they have claimed attacks on multiple ships they say are in violation.
On Tuesday, the Indian ship MSV Faize Noore Oliya sank in the Red Sea off Yemen following an unattributed attack, with all of its crew rescued, according to India’s foreign ministry and a local official in Yemen.
“The targeting of commercial shipping in the region must end,” a foreign ministry spokesperson said.
The Red Sea is a gateway to the Suez Canal, and a previous campaign of Houthi attacks on commercial vessels during the Gaza war made passage through the strategic shortcut increasingly untenable, prompting many shippers to instead take lengthy detours around the southern tip of Africa.