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About 20% of all global oil traded passed through the waterway prior to the conflict.
07:14, Wed, Aug 5, 2026 Updated: 07:16, Wed, Aug 5, 2026
US President Donald Trump (Image: Getty)
The US, Iran, and Oman are nearing an interim agreement to reopen a critical trade route affected by the Middle East war, according to reports.
According to the report by the Axios news outlet, the US is planning for an announcement on Wednesday, August 5.
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The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has been a sore point in the US-Iran war, which sparked on February 28 after the US and Israel carried out joint strikes on several key Iranian.
Iran retaliated by striking sites across the Middle East and closing the strait.
About 20% of all global oil traded passed through the waterway prior to the conflict.
An anti-US billboard in Tehran, Iran (Image: Getty)
The closure has throttled the movement of oil out of the resource-rich Middle East, causing volatility in global markets and spikes in fuel prices worldwide.
The US and Iran signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on June 17 to bring the war to a close within 60 days, but conflict resumed less than one month after the agreement was signed.
Now, Axios - citing two regional sources and a US official - has reported that an interim agreement has been under negotiations for several weeks, aimed at resuming the ceasefire and restarting negotiations over a nuclear deal.
Axios reports that the potential "deal would meet some of Iran's demands for greater control over traffic in the Strait of Hormuz - control it didn't have before the war."
It would enable a 60-day temporary arrangement between Oman and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, which could be extended, according to the sources.
A vessel off the cost of the UAE on August 3 (Image: Getty)
The deal would include the following points, according to Axios:
- All inbound traffic of ships through the strait and into the Gulf would go in a northern lane through Iranian waters
- All outbound traffic through the strait and into the Arabian Sea would go in a southern lane through Omani waters, in coordination with Iran
- No tolls or fees would be charged during the 60-day period
- The parties would work on clearing naval mines from the median lane of the strait within 30 days
- After the median lane is cleared, it would be used for inbound and outbound traffic under the terms of a permanent arrangement to be negotiated between Oman and Iran
US President Donald Trump did not to follow through on threats of a massive bombing campaign in an attempt provide for to more time for diplomacy.
However, Mr Trump could green-light major strikes if a deal is not reached soon.
Speaking to Fox News, Mr Trump said: "The Strait is going to be open very soon - or they're gonna hit very hard, and then the Strait is going to be open."
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