In a shocking revelation that has sent ripples through global diplomatic circles, former U.S. President Donald Trump has issued an explosive military threat against Oman, a longstanding American ally in the Middle East, according to reporting from Fox News. Trump stated bluntly that if Oman interferes with his administration’s separate negotiations with Tehran over reopening the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz, U.S. military forces will bomb the country.
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway linking the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea, stands as one of the world’s most vital economic chokepoints. Roughly 20 percent of global oil supplies and a large share of global liquefied natural gas transit through the route daily, making its six-month closure amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran war a major disruptor of global energy markets. Since the joint U.S.-Israeli military strike on Iran in February, Tehran has maintained a near-total blockade of the strait, making its reopening the central priority of international diplomatic efforts in the region.
Oman, which shares a southern border with the Strait of Hormuz and has positioned itself as a neutral party in the ongoing conflict, has emerged as a key mediator between Tehran and Western powers. Despite suffering multiple cross-border strikes from Iranian forces, the Omani government has advanced separate bilateral talks with Iran to end the blockade. As of early Monday, Iranian officials confirmed that a tentative agreement to allow commercial ship transit through the strait was nearly finalized. Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei announced that “an understanding has been reached regarding the map of the transit route,” with final details set to be ironed out ahead of an official joint statement. Omani officials have previously characterized these negotiations as productive and positive.
The revelation of Trump’s threat came from Fox News reporter Trey Yingst, who quoted the president making the comment in a phone interview, which included graphic profanity. Yingst cited Trump as saying: “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.”
The threat comes as a 60-day U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at advancing ceasefire talks is set to expire imminently. The MoU, signed June 18, was intended to lay the groundwork for a permanent end to hostilities, but the agreement collapsed weeks ago after both sides resumed offensive strikes, with Trump officially declaring the ceasefire “over” on July 8. As the MoU approached its formal expiration Monday, Trump reaffirmed his core policy priority in a Truth Social post, writing: “The number one goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot have, in any way, shape, or form, a nuclear weapon.”
In the same phone interview with Fox News, Trump also made the unsubstantiated claim that the U.S. maintains a direct backchannel communication link with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Iran’s dominant military, economic, and political institution. The claim was immediately and forcefully denied by an IRGC spokesperson, who told Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency: “There are no talks taking place between IRGC officials and the Americans, and this lie by Trump is merely fantasies caused by the delusions and nightmares he has suffered as a result of defeat and desperation in the war.”
Trump also pushed back against growing concerns over depleted U.S. weapons stockpiles amid the ongoing conflict, claiming that the amount of munitions used since the war began was “peanuts” and that the upcoming November U.S. midterm elections had “nothing to do with my thinking” on war policy. “They’re good poker players, but they’re dying,” Trump was quoted as saying of Iranian leadership. “I have no time schedule. I’m not in a hurry.”
Publicly available analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington D.C.-based think tank, contradicts Trump’s assessment of weapons stockpiles, painting a grim picture of rapidly depleted short-term stockpiles that cannot be quickly replaced. Retired Marine Corps Colonel and senior CSIS advisor Mark Cancian previously told the BBC that producing a single guided missile typically takes “one to five years,” adding “there’s nothing you can do to speed that up.” All official data on U.S. ammunition expenditures and remaining stockpiles remains classified.
Negotiations over reopening the strait have hit additional stumbling blocks over Iranian demands for compensation. Earlier this month, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that a full reopening would only move forward after the U.S. compensates Iran for what Tehran calls violations of the expired MoU. Reuters previously reported, citing an unnamed Iranian official, that Tehran is demanding transit fees equal to between 5 and 7 percent of the total value of each cargo passing through the strait.
Domestically, even in a pro-Trump Tennessee munitions manufacturing community that benefits from war production, public opinion remains divided on the administration’s handling of the Iran conflict, with locals split on whether escalating hostilities are justified or whether continued military engagement is unnecessary.