• Iran insists negotiations with Oman only focused on Hormuz transit
• Pakistani officials say immediate goal is to get both sides to the table
• Rubio maintains ultimate goal is ‘denuclearisation of Iran’
• US treasury secretary sees chances of Hormuz deal with Iran being finalised today
• Report claims US has ‘virtually exhausted’ its precision missiles
• Crew rescued after Indian vessel reportedly sunk near Yemeni waters
DUBAI: Qatar said on Tuesday mediators were making progress in efforts to end the US-Iran war, driving oil prices lower, although Tehran has denied President Donald Trump’s assertion that talks are already under way.
Benchmark Brent crude fell more than four per cent after the comments from Qatar, extending Monday’s steep losses on hopes that an arrangement could soon be reached to restore traffic through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.
But for now, the strait remained virtually shut, with another ship coming under attack while trying to cross it.
Trump said on Monday that talks with Tehran had started and Iran faced a “last chance” to reach a deal. Iranian officials insisted no negotiations with the United States were taking place.
Instead, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei spoke only of talks with Oman over transit through the Strait of Hormuz, saying they had been positive and were continuing.
These were focused on designating safe inbound and outbound lanes, state media quoted him as saying. He added the route being negotiated was aimed at ensuring the sovereign rights and national security of both Iran and Oman.
Nevertheless, senior US officials struck an optimistic tone, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Secretary of State Marco Rubio both pointing to progress in discussions aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a corridor that normally carries about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.
“There’s been progress made in those talks, but not finality yet. We’re hoping that will happen very shortly,” Rubio told reporters at the State Department.
He also said that the “denuclearisation of Iran” was the “ultimate deal”, Al Jazeera reported.
“I think there is a conversation and a negotiation that we are involved in between Iran and Oman on how more ships can be able to go through there safely in the short term, as we move towards … longer-term talks about [Iran’s] denuclearisation,” Washington’s top diplomat said.
Separately, Bessent said a deal with Iran on reopening Hormuz could be reached by Tuesday or 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 and move towards a more normalised position in this conflict,” he said in an interview with CNBC.
Asked if a deal would allow Iran to charge a toll on shipping using the strait, Bessent said: “I think it would be freedom of movement.”
Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said diplomatic contacts had reached “very progressive stages.” He said mediators including Qatar, Pakistan and Oman were coordinating closely to facilitate negotiations and exchange draft proposals between Washington and Tehran.
A senior Pakistani security official said: “Our sole goal at this moment is to make both parties at least agree to start talking.”
Trump’s comments followed his weekend decision to cancel plans for what he described as “massive attacks” on Iran.
Shipping risks remain
Iran has halted most traffic through Hormuz while Washington maintains a blockade of Iran-related shipping and ports. Yemen’s Houthis have also imposed a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea, further restricting oil export routes.
A cargo vessel reported being struck by an unidentified projectile near the Strait of Hormuz off Oman’s coast, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) maritime security agency.
Maritime sources told Reuters on Tuesday the vessel was a dry bulk ship. Its crew abandoned the vessel and one seafarer was missing.
In another incident, coast guards rescued the crew of an Indian-flagged commercial ship that sank in the Red Sea after an attack, an official in the Yemeni city of Mokha said, with New Delhi condemning the “unprovoked” aggression.
Iran has long demanded control over Hormuz, which it says it should share with Oman on the opposite shore.
A senior Iranian source said Tehran is seeking full control over inbound shipping and visibility over outbound traffic, with the ability to intervene if necessary.
Giving Iran such control would be a major shift in the regional balance of power and make it more difficult for Washington to argue that “Operation Epic Fury” had weakened Washington’s longstanding foe.
Concerns are mounting about the sustainability of the US military campaign. The US Army has used up much of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during the war, raising concerns about the military’s readiness for future conflicts.
The missiles are principally the Army’s surface-to-surface weapons, known as Army Tactical Missile Systems and Precision Strike Missiles. The US has used “virtually all” of these weapons.
Prolonged pain
Gulf officials and analysts say Iran is betting it can outlast Washington by turning the region’s trade routes, shipping lanes and energy infrastructure into pressure points that steadily raise the cost of confrontation.
“Their big advantage is that they can hurt the regional states and the global economy,” said Michael Knights of the Washington Institute.
Trump has yet to achieve the objectives he set out at the start of the war: dismantling Iran’s nuclear programme, curbing its ability to attack regional rivals.
Meanwhile, the head of Saudi oil giant Aramco said the world had lost more than 2.6bn barrels of oil since the war began, warning global inventories were running low despite measures to reroute flows.
Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2026
