WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said that no one nation would control the Strait of Hormuz, pushing back on Iranian demands to manage the vital energy waterway.

“Nobody’s going to control it. It’s international waters,” Trump said Wednesday at the White House. “The strait’s going to be open to everybody” and the U.S. will “watch over it.”

Trump was asked during a meeting of his Cabinet officials if he was comfortable with a short-term deal that would open the strait but under Iranian control.

He didn’t indicate what steps the United States would take to ensure free passage of vessels through the waterway, which has been closed since the start of the war. Iran has maintained a blockade of the strait and commercial shippers have been hesitant to attempt transit.

Trump’s comments cast doubt on prospects for an immediate breakthrough between the U.S. and Iran, with markets optimistic for a deal after both sides reported progress in recent days. The status of the strait is a key sticking point.

Oil remained lower on the day as traders stayed optimistic that a deal was in sight, even amid conflicting statements from the two sides.

Trump indicated the U.S. was “not satisfied” with negotiations to end the almost three-month war, noting that “maybe we have to go back and finish it,” without elaborating on whether that meant further military action.

Trump’s remarks followed an Iranian state television report on a draft interim peace deal, which said maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz could return to normal within a month of it coming into effect. The White House cast the report as false.

“This report from Iranian controlled media is not true and the MOU they ‘released’ is a complete fabrication,” the White House said in a social media post. “Nobody should believe what Iranian state media is putting out.”

Further damping prospects for an agreement, Trump downplayed the possibility of Iranian sanctions relief.

“We’re not talking about any easing of sanctions, no money, no nothing,” he said.

Other key points in negotiations reported by Iran’s IRIB News included the U.S. lifting its naval blockade on Iranian ports and the American navy leaving waters surrounding Iran.

The draft also said Iran and Oman will have a mechanism in place to oversee shipping in the strait. That’s one of the most contentious issues holding up a deal, with the U.S. saying vessels must be allowed free passage. Oman has not commented in recent weeks on Iran saying the two are in discussions about managing the strait.

“Managing the passage of ships, their inspection and receiving service fees are at the discretion of the Islamic Republic and in partnership and in cooperation with Oman,” the Iranian state TV report said. Iran hasn’t committed to unconditionally reopening the strait, it said.

Iran and the U.S. are negotiating to extend their ceasefire by around two months and reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz. Tehran’s effective closure of the waterway at the start of the war in February has sent oil and natural gas prices soaring and pushed up inflation globally.

Both Iran and the U.S. have said their talks, via mediators such as Pakistan and Qatar, are making headway. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that “there’s been some progress and some interest, and we’ll see over the next few hours and days whether progress could be made.”

Iran has kept up “indirect contacts with the Americans,” Ali Bagheri-Kani, deputy secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Wednesday in Russia. “Until we have agreed on all issues, we consider that we have agreed on nothing.”

Bagheri-Kani added that “a completely different procedure will be introduced” for Hormuz passage and that Iran and Oman are holding talks to determine that mechanism.

An Iranian delegation recently returned to Tehran following intense talks in Doha that yielded good progress, according to a diplomat with knowledge of the visit.

The negotiations, in coordination with the U.S., focused on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s highly enriched uranium, while the issue of Tehran’s frozen funds was also discussed as part of a potential final agreement, said the diplomat, who asked not to be identified speaking of private discussions.

Facing domestic pressure to end a conflict that’s driven up inflation and gas prices and imperiled his party’s prospects in November midterm elections, Trump has maintained that he won’t be rushed on a deal. He said Wednesday that Iranians thought U.S. political pressure would force his hand in negotiations.

“They thought they were going to out-wait me,” Trump said. “‘We’ll out-wait him, he’s got the midterms.’ I don’t care about the midterms. Look what happened last night,” he added, referring to victories for candidates he backed in primary races.

The warring sides, since notching a fragile ceasefire in early April, also need to agree on what portion of Iranian financial assets will be unfrozen and how quickly. On Tuesday, Iranian state media said Tehran wants $12 billion unfrozen once an interim deal is agreed.

Iran hawks in the U.S., including Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, are likely to balk at such concessions and pressure Trump to revert to bombing the country.

Another potential obstacle is a parallel war in Lebanon between Israel and Tehran-backed Hezbollah militants. Israel has stepped up attacks in recent days and said its ground forces are moving further into its northern neighbor’s territory.

Iran insists the ceasefire has to cover “all fronts,” including Lebanon. Israel, which started the wider war when it bombed Iran alongside the US, is reluctant to accept any restrictions on its operations.

Israeli officials have argued for the need to protect border communities and counter rockets and drone attacks from Hezbollah, which is classified as a terrorist organization by the U.S. Several explosive drones fell in Israeli territory near the border with Lebanon on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces said.

Here’s more on the Iran war:

—Commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz gained modest momentum as at least two non-Iranian supertankers exited the Persian Gulf, the latest mini-flurry in energy flows transiting the vital waterway.

—An oil tanker named Olympic Life reported an explosion off the coast of Oman on Tuesday, according to the Joint Maritime Information Center.

—The U.S. on Monday night killed several Iranian soldiers in an attack on ships it said were laying mines near the strait. Iran fired back at American jets and said it downed an unmanned drone.

_____

(With assistance from John Bowker, Josh Wingrove, Fiona MacDonald and Will Kubzansky.)

©2026 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.