# Trump Threatens to Bomb Oman as Talks to Reopen the Strait of Hormuz Stall

Shipping through the waterway remains in the single digits per day, against more than 130 before the war, and a bulk carrier was struck by a projectile on Tuesday.

- Published: 2026-08-18T05:17:18.667Z
- Canonical: https://polylog.news/2026-08-18/trump-threatens-to-bomb-oman-as-talks-to-reopen-the-strait-o
- Publisher: Polylog (Global desk)
- Section: geopolitics
- Sources: [Kommersant](https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/8891681), [Globes (Hebrew)](https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001552577#utm_source=RSS)

The Russian business daily Kommersant, citing The Wall Street Journal, [reported that the deadlock](https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/8891681) in talks between Oman and Iran on restoring shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has angered President Donald Trump, who said he would bomb Oman. Trump made the threat in an interview with Fox News, telling the network that if Oman gets in the way of a deal, the United States would strike it. He also [declined to extend the ceasefire](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/17/us-iran-war-trump-hormuz.html) with Iran as the 60-day negotiating period ended.

Oman and Iran have been working on the specifics of new shipping lanes through the strait, through which [34 percent of the world's seaborne crude passed in 2025](https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/6032804-donald-trump-threats-iran-oman-negotiations-strait-of-hormuz/). Tehran has said the waterway will not reopen until its conditions are met. Reuters reported that Iranian officials have signalled a shift to what they describe as a fully offensive posture.

The risk to commercial traffic is not theoretical. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) organisation, which tracks shipping incidents in the region, said a vessel transiting outbound was [struck by an unknown projectile](https://www.arabnews.com/node/2655036/middle-east), suffering engine room damage and one crew casualty, with the Omani coast guard assisting the remaining crew. Crossings of the strait are still in the single digits per day, compared with more than 130 before the war.

Turkey has kept close contact with Washington, Tehran and the mediators Pakistan and Qatar, acting as an intermediary between the parties, according to [The Hindu's running coverage](https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/iran-us-west-asia-war-strait-of-hormuz-news-donald-trump-live-updates-on-august-18-2026/article71358724.ece). Globes, reporting for Israeli traders before Tuesday's open, wrote that the escalation between the United States and Iran [pulled Asian bourses lower](https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001552577#utm_source=RSS) while oil prices continued to climb.

## What this means

Oman is the mediator and the coastal state on the southern side of the strait, so a threat against it removes the one channel through which a shipping arrangement could be agreed. Tanker owners, marine insurers and Asian refiners that depend on Gulf crude carry the cost through war-risk premiums and longer voyages, while producers outside the Gulf, including American, Brazilian and West African exporters, capture the redirected demand. Each incident of the kind reported by UKMTO makes the insurance market price the strait as a war zone rather than a trade route.

## What to watch

- Whether Oman stays at the table after the threat, since it is the only party currently talking to both Washington and Tehran.
- The daily count of vessel transits through the strait, which is the cleanest measure of whether any deal is being implemented on the water rather than announced in public.
- War-risk insurance quotes for Gulf voyages, because they translate the political standoff into a per-cargo cost that reaches consumers as fuel prices.