WASHINGTON: Trump’s Oman threat escalated Gulf tensions Monday as President Donald Trump said the United States could attack Oman if it obstructed US objectives involving Iran.
Trump made the remarks to Fox News as a 60-day US-Iran ceasefire period reached its expiry without a formal peace agreement. Iran has denied that direct negotiations are under way.
Oman has been discussing the Strait of Hormuz with Tehran as commercial traffic through the waterway declines sharply. The source says Washington also maintains pressure on Iranian ports.
Kpler data cited by CNBC showed only three ships crossed the strait on Sunday. The five-day average stood at 12 vessels, compared with about 130 daily before the war began.
Read: Iran Says Oman Agreed on Strait of Hormuz Route Map
Trump also said informal contacts were taking place with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He repeated that Washington’s central demand was that Iran must not possess a nuclear weapon.
Read: Rubio-Araghchi Hormuz Clash Fuels US-Iran Law Dispute
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran had no direct negotiations with Washington. He said Qatar and Pakistan were exchanging messages.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi separately said the Strait of Hormuz would remain under Iran’s control, according to the supplied report.
