Tehran sets conditions for a two-day reopening
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said Tehran has reached a plan with Qatari mediators to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days, provided the United States meets its conditions. He called the latest US outreach a positive step, and an Iranian delegation travelled to Doha for the talks. President Donald Trump wrote on social media that negotiations were "going fine" but added that he was "not in that much of a hurry" to reach a deal.
The strait has been effectively closed to normal commercial traffic during the US-Israel war with Iran. Before the conflict, about a fifth of the world's oil and a large share of its liquefied natural gas passed through the narrow channel between Iran and Oman.
LNG tanker hit in the Arabian Gulf
Qatar Gas Transport Company, known as Nakilat, confirmed that one of its liquefied natural gas tankers was struck by "unidentified objects" while transiting the Arabian Gulf. The United Arab Emirates condemned the attack on Qatar's LNG carrier. No casualty figures were released, and it was not clear what caused the impact.
The incident complicates the diplomacy. Shipowners have been waiting for a security guarantee before restarting scheduled voyages, and insurers have treated the Gulf as a war-risk zone for months. Crews on anchored vessels around Bandar Abbas have stayed put through repeated rounds of talks that produced no lasting arrangement.
Oman seen as a bridge for a wider pact
Omani officials are in a position to broker a non-aggression arrangement among Gulf states, according to diplomats following the discussions. Such a pact would not reopen the strait on its own, but it could give shipowners and energy buyers a longer-term framework for routing cargo.
For now, the timeline rests on Washington's answer. Two days is a short window. Both sides have described the moment as delicate, and people involved in the talks say any reopening would be phased rather than immediate, starting with escorted convoys and limited tanker traffic before regular schedules resume. Asian refiners that rely on Gulf crude have been drawing down inventories and buying spot cargoes from the Atlantic basin at higher freight costs.
Oil and gas prices have swung on every signal out of Doha. A confirmed reopening would ease freight and insurance costs across Asia and Europe, while a collapse in talks would leave the market with the same tight supply it has faced since the closure began.
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