Christine Drews Sieger
Tensions over Middle Eastern waterways reached a boil as Donald Trump issued a blunt warning to Oman over its ongoing negotiations with Iran.
Tensions over Middle Eastern waterways reached a boil on Monday morning during an interview on Fox News.
Donald Trump took aim at a vital defense partner over its ongoing discussions with Iran.
“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the s*** out of them,” Trump warned on air.
The blunt threat lands right as a 60-day ceasefire between Washington and Tehran nears its deadline.
Tehran’s tactical deployment of explosive drones, sea mines, and high-speed vessels has successfully crippled commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz for months, according to Daily mail.
Strait under siege
Roughly one-fifth of global oil flows through the narrow passage. By using the shipping block to gain diplomatic leverage, Iran has driven global market reaction, sending crude oil to $89 per barrel and pushing pump prices in the U.S. to $4 per gallon.
Muscat has long served as a trusted diplomatic bridge between Western powers and Iran, even helping broker the 2015 nuclear agreement.
Omani negotiators are now working to resolve the current standoff through a joint management proposal for the waterway.
According to Daily Mail, the White House adamantly rejects any arrangement that lets Tehran levy taxes or fees on US-backed oil tankers. Back in May, Trump similarly targeted the Gulf nation during a Cabinet meeting.
“Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that. They’ll be fine,” Trump asserted at the time.
Rising stakes
Washington has maintained a strict naval blockade on Iranian ports to choke trade and force the regime back to the table.
Washington’s terms for a deal remain strict: a two-decade freeze on Iranian uranium enrichment, a complete dismantling of its nuclear weapons ambition, and the forfeiture of all enriched material.
In exchange, Tehran insists on full sovereignty over the waterway, an immediate halt to the naval blockade, the release of impounded funds, economic sanction rollbacks, and war damages.
Tensions erupted in July when Iranian forces targeted commercial vessels, triggering American strikes on Persian Gulf missile sites.
Iran answered by firing ballistic missiles and drones at US military bases and regional allies like Kuwait.
The conflict has claimed the lives of 18 US service members and wounded hundreds more over the past six months, Daily Mail reports.
