Trump says deal to reopen Hormuz could come soon

President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas on Aug. 4. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

CAIRO — U.S. President Donald Trump said a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz could come as early as Aug. 5, as Iran and Oman inched toward an agreement on the critical waterway that could ease pressure on the global economy and potentially help bring an end to the war.

The U.S., along with Israel, launched the war on Feb. 28, citing various goals including toppling Tehran’s government and ending its nuclear program. But the conflict has devolved into a fight over the strait as Iranian threats and attacks on shipping ground traffic through the waterway to a halt.

Closure of the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas once passed, has driven up the price of fuel and basic goods far beyond the region, roiling the global economy. Trump is also under mounting pressure to end an unpopular war ahead of midterm congressional elections.

Trump says a deal is close

The U.S. president was asked by reporters traveling with him in California about a report on the Axios news site that an announcement on the Strait of Hormuz could be made on Aug. 5.

“It could happen. Tomorrow or the next day,” he said, speaking the evening of Aug. 4 California time. “A lot of progress has been made.”

President Trump says a deal with Iran could happen as early as today after talks continued Tuesday, warning Iran would face severe consequences if it backs out and again saying it cannot have a nuclear weapon.

CENTCOM said the Strait of Hormuz remains open, with U.S. forces… pic.twitter.com/U0fTSALAMz — Fox News (@FoxNews) August 5, 2026

Oil prices initially eased on hopes of a deal that would allow shipping to resume but later inched upward. Brent crude, the international standard, was around $80 per barrel on Aug. 5 — still well below the levels it hit at the height of the conflict.

The U.S. and Iran reached a deal to open the strait in June, only for attacks to resume. In recent days, Trump has again alternately threatened massive strikes and voiced support for diplomatic efforts.

Attacks on shipping continue

Even as hopes increased that a deal on the Strait of Hormuz could be imminent, attacks on shipping in the region continued.

🚨 The Houthis claimed a ballistic missile strike on NCC WAFA (IMO 9688348), a Saudi-flagged product tanker, off the coast of Yanbu in the northern Red Sea.

The vessel was last seen transmitting on 19 July, southbound in the Red Sea toward Bab el-Mandeb. She has been dark since.… pic.twitter.com/hs9p4hopRv — Windward (@WindwardAI) August 5, 2026

The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels claimed Aug. 5 they had fired ballistic missiles toward a Saudi oil tanker called the Wafa in the Red Sea. Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a military spokesman for the Houthis, said in a prerecorded statement that the vessel was targeted off the Saudi port city of Yanbu. He didn’t provide evidence.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia.

The attack is part of a recent escalation between the rebels and Saudi Arabia that threatened to reignite Yemen's civil war, which pitted the Houthis against a Saudi-led coalition supporting the country’s government.

In July, the Houthis announced they were closing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that leads to the Red Sea for Saudi-linked shipping. That puts additional pressure on international shipping since the Red Sea became a key alternative route for Saudi oil exports during the war.

On Aug. 4, an Indian-flagged commercial ship sank in the Red Sea off Yemen after being struck by an explosive-laden boat, Yemeni and Indian authorities said. Yemen’s coast guard rescued the crew, which included 13 Indians and a Yemeni. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

Earlier Aug. 4, a cargo ship reported being “hit by an unknown projectile” about 23 miles northeast of the Omani port city of Al Khasab in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center.

Routes could be controlled by Iran and Oman

The possible agreement emerging from talks between Iran and Oman calls for ships to enter the Persian Gulf through an Iranian-controlled route and exit through a route controlled by Oman, two regional officials told the Associated Press. Service fees would be charged for providing security and preserving the maritime environment, the officials said.

The southern route through the Strait of Hormuz remains free and open for all commercial vessels seeking to transit the international waterway. Over the past three months, U.S. forces have assisted more than 1,000 vessels in successfully transiting the strait despite unwarranted… pic.twitter.com/TcszH0GimG — U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) August 4, 2026

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations.

The Trump administration has previously ruled out any deal that would give Iran control over the strait, which was an open international waterway before the war but has seen traffic reduced to a trickle.

In an exchange with reporters Aug. 3, the U.S. president reiterated his public opposition to tolls being charged. “I’m not going to let them charge,” Trump said. “Anybody’s going to charge, we’ll charge.”

The regional officials said negotiations are still underway and that the final agreement could take a different form, with any deal linked to lifting the U.S. blockade on Iran’s ports.

U.S. and Iranian officials say progress is being made

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Aug 4 that Tehran’s talks with Oman were focused on “establishing safe inbound and outbound shipping lanes,” routes that “uphold sovereign rights while also addressing the national security considerations of both Iran and Oman.”

“The final results of these negotiations will be announced once concluded,” he added, according to Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed progress had been made in those talks — but said they were not final.

Rubio has previously ruled out any deal that would give Iran control over the strait, saying last month that would create a “very dangerous precedent.”

Written by Elena Becatoros, Samy Magdy and Darlene Superville. Becatoros reported from Athens, Greece, and Superville from Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. Amer Madhani and Matthew Lee in Washington also contributed.