People wade in the water with cargo ships at anchor in the background, in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, on June 30, 2026. Amirhosein Khorgooi /ISNA via AP
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Aug. 5 that the United States and Iran had held “very good discussions” on a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz but warned of hard action if Tehran refused to open the waterway.
“The Strait’s going to be open very soon, or they’re going to get hit very hard,” the president said in a Fox News interview.
Trump said the United States is prepared to launch “a tremendous attack” against Iran, which he said would be “the biggest since World War II.”
He warned that such major strikes could occur if Iran backed out of negotiations again.
“The hard hit is yet to come, and hopefully we won’t have to use it. I hope we won’t have to. We’re having very good discussions,” Trump said. “They don’t like to admit that, but, you know, it’s a little bit disconcerting. You tell people like, ‘We’re having wonderful discussions,’ and then some guy will come out of Iran and say, ‘We have not met. We have not.’ It’s just such a lie.”
Trump told reporters before departing Los Angeles on Aug. 4 that talks with Iran were “moving along very nicely” and that the outcome would be known within 48 hours.
When asked about the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said that the waterway could reopen “tomorrow or the next day,” noting that “a lot of progress has been made” in the U.S.–Iran talks, but he did not elaborate.
Iran on Aug. 3 denied that it was holding talks with the United States, saying its current talks are instead with Oman on a new shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz, according to state-run Fars News Agency.
“We currently have no negotiations with the United States. Instead, we are working, in consultation with Oman, to determine a route for vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz at the earliest opportunity,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters.
Baghaei said that Iran and Oman were seeking to establish, “as quickly as possible,” a temporary shipping route to ensure safe navigation through the narrow waterway, describing the discussions as bilateral talks between the strait’s two coastal states.
The United States and Iran have clashed over freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil and gas shipments. Tehran has insisted that ships use the northern shipping lane while opposing the southern passage, where it has periodically attacked ships and then stated that it’s unsafe for vessels.
Trump has
that any deal reached with Iran must guarantee that Tehran cannot develop nuclear weapons and ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
The two nations signed a preliminary agreement in June to halt the war and fully reopen the waterway. The ceasefire collapsed on July 7 after Trump
it over and ordered strikes, as he accused Iran of attacking ships in the waterway. Iran’s armed forces retaliated by attacking Middle Eastern nations hosting U.S. military assets.
The strikes lasted for 13 consecutive days before Trump ordered a pause to allow negotiations. The U.S. military later renewed attacks after Tehran attempted more missile attacks on U.S. forces in the Middle East.
Trump
on Aug. 2 that he had called off major U.S. strikes after Gulf allies persuaded him that a deal with Iran involving the Strait of Hormuz was imminent.
Tom Ozimek contributed to this report.
