US President Donald Trump said his administration had “very good discussions” with Iran during all-day talks on Wednesday, fueling expectations of a quick end to the five-month conflict, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
Oil prices fell and stocks jumped in Asian trading after Wall Street hit record highs on hopes that a deal to restore traffic through the blocked Strait of Hormuz could be reached soon.
“They had all-day talks“, Trump told the negotiators on “Fox News“.
The Strait of Hormuz “will be open very soon“, Trump added.
“If (the Iranians) back off again, they will be hit really hard“, he warned.
The US president has often threatened massive strikes if Tehran does not reach a deal with Washington, and has since indicated progress in the negotiations, which have so far failed to end the hostilities.
The American website “Axios“, citing two regional sources and a US official, reported that the US and Iran were approaching a provisional agreement to reopen the strait with the consent of Oman, which controls part of the waterway. The report said Washington had been aiming to announce the deal today.
However, Iranian state media, citing an informed source, said that a deal with Oman over the strait, through which about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies normally pass, would be delayed "as long as the United States continues to threaten Iran."
Trump has yet to achieve the goals he set for himself at the start of the war: dismantling Iran's nuclear program, limiting its ability to attack countries in the region and creating the conditions for the Iranians to overthrow their clerical rulers.
Iran has shut down most traffic through the Strait of Hormuz while Washington maintains a blockade of Iran-linked ships and ports. Qatar had earlier said mediators were making progress in efforts to end the conflict, even after Tehran denied that talks were underway.
Trump and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani discussed efforts to narrow differences between Washington and Tehran and improve prospects for a lasting settlement of the conflict during a phone call on Tuesday, the Qatari emir's office said.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghai said talks with Oman on transit through the strait were positive and ongoing, focusing on establishing safe sea lanes, state media reported. He added that the way the negotiations are being conducted is aimed at guaranteeing the sovereign rights and national security of both Iran and Oman.
Iran has long insisted on control of the Strait of Hormuz, which it says it should share with neighboring Oman.
Tehran last week rejected an Omani proposal that would have allowed for shared oversight and the collection of "voluntary fees" from ships.
Yemeni's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have imposed a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea, further restricting oil export routes. A shell hit and sank an Indian-flagged ship near Yemen, but all 14 sailors on board were rescued, Indian officials said, in an attack Yemen blamed on the Houthis.
The UN's International Maritime Organization has reported at least 17 deaths of sailors in 64 incidents in the Strait of Hormuz since the war began on February 28.
This is in addition to Iranian government figures of 50 killed and 500 wounded in US strikes since the resumption of hostilities in late June - figures reported before Iran said a US strike on Qeshm Island in late July killed a couple and their 2-year-old son.
Iran has reported more than 3,400 deaths since the US and Israel began the war on February 28, while the US has reported 18 military deaths.