Trump Says Iran War Could End Soon as Iran-Oman Hormuz Talks Advance

President Donald Trump said Thursday he believes the war with Iran could end soon as Iran and Oman moved closer to an agreement governing commercial passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

“I think it’s going to end pretty soon. I don’t think they can go much longer,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, referring to Iran, according to Reuters. He did not provide a timeline.

Iran, however, disputes Trump’s description of the diplomatic process and maintains that it is negotiating with Oman—not directly with the United States—over shipping arrangements in the strait.

According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Tehran and Muscat have agreed upon coordinates of shipping routes and are completing the preparation of a joint statement. Nevertheless, Iranian officials state that there is no agreement yet and that an arrangement with Oman would not mean re-opening of the waterway.

Iranian Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused Trump of engaging in “theater diplomacy on loop” by repeatedly threatening major attacks before announcing possible diplomatic breakthroughs.

“Using bullying + broken promises + fake news as leverage is a failed strategy,” Ghalibaf wrote on X, according to Al Jazeera. He called on Washington to acknowledge what he described as the facts and fulfill its commitments.

Disputes over control and fees

According to Reuters, the proposed agreement is meant to ensure commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which served as a passage for about one-fifth of global oil shipments before the war started.

Under one of the proposed versions, Iran would be responsible for intervention in inbound shipping, whereas the ships moving out would follow the route between Iran and Oman. Oman would permit exit of the vessels having been notified of it by Iran.

The United States has said it wants commercial vessels to have unrestricted passage without fees or any requirement to obtain Tehran’s approval. Iran maintains that it and Oman should jointly manage navigation through their respective territorial waters.

A senior Iranian source told Reuters that Tehran was seeking service fees equal to 5% to 7% of a vessel’s cargo value, while Oman was discussing fees of about 3%. Washington opposes any such charges.

Shipping and insurance industry representatives have warned that the proposed fee system may be unworkable because payments could violate U.S. sanctions and cause vessels to lose insurance coverage.

Iranian officials also say the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports must be lifted before the strait can fully reopen. Washington has not agreed to that condition.

June agreement failed to stop fighting

The war began Feb. 28 when the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran.

After an April ceasefire and earlier negotiations, Washington and Tehran signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding on June 17.

The agreement formalized the ceasefire, reopened the strait temporarily and began a 60-day negotiating period intended to produce a permanent settlement.

The framework later unraveled as the two sides traded accusations over attacks on commercial vessels, U.S. strikes and competing interpretations of shipping provisions in the agreement, according to an ABC News timeline.

The current Iran-Oman negotiations are intended to address those shipping disputes and potentially create room for broader talks between Washington and Tehran, including negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program.

Iranian officials have stressed that a shipping agreement would not by itself end the wider conflict.

Regional tensions continue

The conflict has continued to affect other countries in the region.

An unnamed senior Saudi official told CNN that intelligence reports indicated Iraqi militias and Iran-backed Houthi fighters could be preparing coordinated attacks against Saudi civilian and economic infrastructure.

The official said potential targets included energy facilities, ports and airports but provided no evidence that attacks had been ordered. The reported plans could not be independently confirmed.

Separately, Saudi authorities said Houthi shelling wounded 11 civilians—including a 4-year-old child—in southern Saudi Arabia on Thursday. Houthi missile and drone attacks also killed at least 30 Yemeni government soldiers and wounded more than 50 others in Yemen, according to the Associated Press.

In southern Lebanon, Israeli strikes and shelling targeting communities in the Tyre district wounded at least eight people on Aug. 6, Lebanese authorities said. The attacks occurred as Israeli and Lebanese representatives continued U.S.-mediated negotiations in Rome, Al Jazeera reported.

Trump acknowledges tighter weapons supplies

Trump also pushed back against reports that the United States was running dangerously low on important munitions.

He said the country had an almost unlimited supply of certain powerful weapons but acknowledged that inventories of other munitions were “a little bit tighter.”

Trump said defense companies were expanding production facilities for weapons including Patriot and Tomahawk missiles. He also threatened to seek lengthy prison sentences for people responsible for leaking information about U.S. stockpiles.

CNN reported, citing senior US officials, that Trump was complaining privately that the leaks about the tight supply of munitions made America look weak, while he was trying to put pressure on Iran.

The White House and Pentagon disputed reports that Trump had confronted Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the stockpile and denied that shortages were limiting U.S. military capabilities.

Gas prices remain above prewar levels

The national average price for regular gasoline stood at approximately $4.06 a gallon on Aug. 6, according to AAA, down three cents from the previous week.

That was about 36% higher than the $2.98 national average reported by AAA on Feb. 26, two days before the war began.

A CNN poll conducted by SSRS found that roughly two-thirds of Americans believed Trump’s military decisions involving Iran had hurt the United States.

Separately, 65% said Trump’s overall policies had worsened economic conditions. That finding measured views of his broader economic policies rather than the effect of the Iran war alone.