DUBAI —The prospects for peace in the Middle East suffered a fresh setback, with US President Donald Trump reportedly threatening to launch strikes against Oman if it “gets in the way” of talks between Washington and Tehran over the Strait of Hormuz.Trump told Fox News said in an interview with Fox News on Monday that a US naval blockade on Iranian ports is putting pressure on the country and that he has no timeline for resolving the conflict.He confirmed there is a backchannel for peace talks with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that bypass mediators and Iranian political officials.”They should put up the white flag of surrender,” Trump said.While the 60-day ceasefire expires Monday, Trump said there is still time for peace and Iran’s relenting to Trump’s primary demand: “The number one Goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot have, in any way, shape, or form, a Nuclear Weapon,” as he wrote on Truth Social around the time of the exclusive call with Fox News’ Trey Yingst.”I have no time schedule,” Trump said. “I’m not in a hurry.”Trump also issued an extraordinary warning to Oman when asked about the Gulf nation’s role in talks involving Iran.”If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the s— out of them,” Trump said.While Trump has long lamented reaching peace with a fractured Iranian regime that has had multiple levels of leadership killed in past strikes, he confirmed US officials are communicating directly through a backchannel with IRGC officials.While speculation swirls Iran is engaging in its decades-long strategy of running out the political clock on Trump, before the midterms, if not 2028, Trump rejected the suggestion that politics is guiding his military strategy as commander in chief.”Midterms have nothing to do with my thinking,” he told Yingst.The president then turned to Israel, where he said he believes it would be most appropriate for him to remain on the sidelines of the country’s elections — while simultaneously leaving open the possibility that he could back a candidate.”I think it’s most appropriate for me to stay out of Israeli elections, but I may endorse somebody,” Trump said.Trump also said Israel should not be carrying out strikes in Gaza, as efforts continue to advance the next phase of a plan that would include the disarmament of Hamas.”We have our own relationship with Hamas,” Trump said. “They are giving up their guns.”Despite Israel’s rejection of trusting Hamas, Trump suggested he could work peace both with a disarming Hamas and Israel.”They fight well with us,” Trump reiterated.Tehran has been locked in ongoing talks with Oman over establishing a secure passage for commercial shipping through the Strait, a strategic oil and gas transit chokepoint that connects the Arabian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.Earlier this month, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said negotiations with Oman were in the “final stages” but stressed that any agreement between the two nations did not mean that the Strait of Hormuz would be reopened, as this was dependent on additional “conditions,” per Iranian state media.Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that talks between the two parties were continuing as they worked towards a joint agreement, Iran’s Fars news agency reported.He reportedly added that an “understanding” had been reached between Iran and Oman on the “navigation route map” in the Strait — which usually carries around a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil trade.“Insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz was imposed on us, the region, and the entire world,” Baghaei said at a press conference. “This is a highly complex issue, and for the first time a mechanism is to be established that both safeguards the sovereignty and sovereign rights of the two coastal states (Iran and Oman) and ensures the safe passage of commercial vessels through this waterway.”Despite the talks, Trump has repeatedly insisted that the US is in control of the Strait, which was effectively closed by Tehran following the outbreak of the Iran war in late February.Trump also provoked a fiery response from Tehran after he apparently jokingly said on Friday that he would soon be declaring the Strait “a territory of the United States.”Responding to the comments in a post on X, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for legal and international affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, said, “The Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian.””This strait will only be closed and opened under Iran’s command, and as long as you do not accept the reality of defeat and cease your fanciful delusions, Iran will continue to enforce the blockade,” he added.
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