Donald Trump has again threatened to bomb Oman if the Gulf country obstructs his effort to end the US-Israel war on Iran. The threat came on Monday, when a two-month negotiating window agreed with Tehran expired without a comprehensive peace agreement.
Trump told Fox News he was “not in a hurry” to reach a deal and said he had no new timetable for negotiations. He also said Iran should surrender and repeated that preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remained his primary goal.
What Trump said about Oman
“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them,” Trump said, directing the threat at a country that is not a party to the war. It was the second time he had threatened Oman, after saying in May that he would “blow up” the country if it failed to “behave”.
Oman has longstanding military and economic ties with the United States and has traditionally served as a backchannel between Washington and Tehran. The Gulf nation, which has 5.3 million people, has also played a mediation role and has itself come under attack from Iran.
Related coverage: Trump says US will claim Strait of Hormuz after Iran war.
How the 60-day agreement expired
Trump signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran at the Palace of Versailles on 17 June during the G7 summit. The agreement paused hostilities and created a maximum 60-day period, extendable only by mutual consent, to negotiate sanctions relief, Iran’s nuclear programme and other disputes.
That period ended on Monday without a breakthrough. Trump has repeatedly said the war would end soon, but no lasting peace agreement has emerged. Iran’s foreign ministry said talks with Oman were continuing in earnest despite Trump’s remarks.
Wider regional pressure
The Strait of Hormuz has been nearly closed since the United States and Israel launched their war on Iran in February. The waterway typically carries about one-fifth of the world’s seaborne oil supplies; Iran lies north of the strait and Oman to the south, and the two countries have been discussing control of it.
More context: Why Trump’s Strait of Hormuz Threat Faces Legal Barriers.
Elsewhere, Yemen’s Houthis claimed they had targeted a Saudi military ship and four escort vessels in a missile and drone attack near the Bab al-Mandeb strait. Saudi officials did not confirm the claim. In Israel, Jared Kushner met Benjamin Netanyahu for more than four hours after Netanyahu rejected a US-backed Gaza peace plan that included an Israeli troop withdrawal before Hamas disarms.
Trump’s other claims
Trump said Washington had opened a direct backchannel to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which the United States and Israel have targeted during the conflict. He also dismissed concerns about US weapons stocks, describing the arsenal used against Iran as “peanuts” and saying advanced munitions had previously been given to Ukraine under Joe Biden.
Also read: Iran weighs return to US talks as Hormuz conditions remain unresolved.
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