JERUSALEM, Israel – Hopes for a breakthrough over the Strait of Hormuz are easing pressure on global oil markets, while Gaza continues to present major obstacles.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed advances in negotiations over the Strait, emphasizing the administration’s core goal concerning Iran’s nuclear program.
“Suffice it to say, there’s been progress made in those talks, but not finality yet. We’re hoping that will happen very shortly,” he said, and added, “The denuclearization of Iran is the ultimate deal.”
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was also optimistic, predicting that Washington could finish an agreement with Iran as early as Wednesday.
“We are in talks with the Iranians, and I think there is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the Strait,” he stated.
Markets reacted immediately, as crude oil prices fell five percent, while Brent crude (light crude oil) dropped below $80 per barrel as traders looked ahead to a possible return of shipping through the waterway.
Iran is also considering allowing European countries to help clear mines from the Strait, a key step toward rebuilding confidence among shipping companies and insurers. However, any operation would require approval from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which laid the mines, highlighting divisions within Iran’s leadership.
***Please sign up for CBN Newsletters and download the CBN News app to ensure you receive the latest news from a Christian perspective.***
Iranian and Omani officials are working on a proposal to have ships entering the Persian Gulf follow a route along Iran’s coast, while outbound traffic would use a channel near Oman.
Tehran announced that ships would pay service fees shared with Oman, but U.S. officials insist that any agreement must preserve freedom of navigation without Iran approving ships or collecting tolls. It’s also unclear who is actually negotiating the deal and what role, if any, the United States is playing.
The diplomatic announcements come as media reports indicate that the U.S. military has used nearly all of its long-range Army tactical missile systems and precision-strike missiles, along with about 80 percent of THAAD interceptors and roughly half of Patriot interceptors.
U.S. CENTCOM has been able to replenish some supplies from military stockpiles elsewhere. Still, officials warn that any major new strikes in Iran could require a greater reliance on manned bombing missions.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cautioned that Israel did not agree to the Gaza Board of Peace terms for disarming Hamas.
Netanyahu said in a video posted to Facebook that Israel will not withdraw in Gaza “from our current lines…until Hamas is completely disarmed.”
As negotiations continue, Hamas Spokesman Ghazi Hamad told British journalist Piers Morgan that resistance is the terror group’s “holy mission.”
He didn’t answer Morgan’s explicit question asking when Hamas would disarm and hand over its weapons, part of the Board of Peace plan for Hamas’s disarmament.
Instead, he said Hamas “will continue to fight…until we reach the end of this occupation and freedom for our people.”
