Trump threatens Oman over pending Iran agreement, officials say

U.S. officials said President Donald Trump warned Oman it could be bombed after the Gulf state moved toward a deal with Iran to jointly manage ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. The administration reportedly opposes elements of the yet-unannounced agreement, including a joint Iranian-Omani control of the exit route and Oman's plan to collect voluntary fees from vessels for security and environmental protection.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the United States views Oman’s approach as insufficiently tough on Tehran. They added that a projectile struck a ship exiting the strait, according to the British maritime monitoring agency, and an Iranian official stated the waterway would remain closed until U.S. demands are met.

"I like the idea of declaring it a territory," Trump said in the Oval Office, adding that he had posted a map on social media showing the strait as U.S. territory.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi responded on X, calling the president’s claim a delusion that would be corrected.

The White House acknowledged Trump’s remarks but declined further comment. Earlier in May, Trump had warned that Oman would “behave like everybody else, or we will have to blow them up.”

Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf reiterated that the strait would stay under Iranian control until Washington lifts sanctions and meets other conditions. Egypt’s foreign ministry said the Omani-Iranian arrangement could facilitate broader U.S.–Iran negotiations, without addressing the U.S. threat.

Trump later asserted that the strait remains open and that a U.S. blockade is still in effect, while claiming all water mines have been removed. Meanwhile, an unidentified projectile damaged a ship’s engine room in the strait, and Yemen’s Houthi rebels claimed to have launched drones at a Saudi oil refinery.