{"id":6935,"date":"2026-05-28T14:35:36","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T14:35:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2026\/05\/28\/why-has-trump-threatened-to-bomb-oman-amid-iran-war-escalation\/"},"modified":"2026-05-28T14:35:36","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T14:35:36","slug":"why-has-trump-threatened-to-bomb-oman-amid-iran-war-escalation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2026\/05\/28\/why-has-trump-threatened-to-bomb-oman-amid-iran-war-escalation\/","title":{"rendered":"Why has Trump threatened to bomb Oman, amid Iran war escalation?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>United States President Donald Trump has <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/5\/27\/trump-appears-to-threaten-oman-with-bombing-over-strait-of-hormuz-impasse\">threatened longtime ally Oman with military force<\/a> if it gets involved in the dispute over shipping access to the Strait of Hormuz, as Washington\u2019s war on Iran once again risks engulfing the Middle East.<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u2019s threat on Wednesday to \u201cblow up\u201d Oman came as Muscat reportedly held talks with Iran about overseeing passage through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway that handles more than 20 percent of the world\u2019s global oil traffic.<\/p>\n<section>\n<h2>Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n<p><span>list of 3 items<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span>list 1 of 3<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/5\/27\/us-iran-issue-conflicting-reports-on-deal-as-trump-says-no-sanction-relief\">US, Iran issue conflicting reports on deal as Trump says no sanction relief<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span>list 2 of 3<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/economy\/2026\/5\/27\/iran-government-sells-subsidised-meat-for-eid-al-adha-under-blockade\">Iran government sells subsidised meat for Eid al-Adha under blockade<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span>list 3 of 3<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/5\/27\/trump-appears-to-threaten-oman-with-bombing-over-strait-of-hormuz-impasse\">Trump appears to threaten Oman over Strait of Hormuz impasse<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>\u201cNobody is going to control it,\u201d Trump said of the strait during a cabinet meeting in Washington. \u201cIt\u2019s international waters, and Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we will have to blow them up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But, while Hormuz is an international strait, most of it is located solely in Iranian and Omani territorial waters \u2013 not international waters \u2013 with parts of its outlying areas reaching United Arab Emirates (UAE) territorial waters.<\/p>\n<p>Here is what we know.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/INTERACTIVE-IRGC-releases-map-of-control-over-Strait-of-Hormuz-May-5-2026-1777975253.png?quality=80\" alt=\"INTERACTIVE - IRGC releases map of control over Strait of Hormuz - May 5, 2026-1777975253\" data-interactive=\"true\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"who-has-the-right-to-control-the-strait-of-hormuz\">Who has the right to control the Strait of Hormuz?<\/h2>\n<p>As a natural waterway that is the only route for Gulf oil producers to ship exports to the open ocean, the strait has served as a free international maritime route for decades. Following the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/2\/28\/explosions-in-downtown-tehran-smoke-seen-rising\">US-Israeli joint attacks on Iran on February 28<\/a>, however, Tehran closed the waterway and began to assert sovereignty over it, including <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/3\/26\/tehranstollbooth-how-iran-picks-who-to-let-through-strait-of-hormuz\">charging tolls<\/a> of as much as $2m per ship at times.<\/p>\n<p>Under international maritime law, countries are not permitted to charge tolls to shipping passing through natural straits such as Hormuz, even where they are not in international waters. Countries can, however, provide services to shippers, such as insurance, maintenance and docking assistance.<\/p>\n<p>Shortly before Trump\u2019s comment on Wednesday, Iran\u2019s state television reported that Iran and the United States were close to agreeing on a memorandum of understanding (MOU) under which Tehran and Muscat\u00a0would jointly control the strait. The proposal designates payments for passing vessels, framed as \u201cfees for services\u201d rather than \u201ctolls\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>While the Trump administration has called the claims of such an MoU \u201ca complete fabrication\u201d, analysts say his threat suggests that an understanding between Iran and Oman is precisely what the US president is trying to avoid.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat Washington wants to prevent is the normalisation of Iranian control over Hormuz, dressed in administrative and legal clothing and given Arab cover by a US ally,\u201d Muhanad Seloom, non-resident senior fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThreatening a small ally is also a message to the whole Gulf: Do not give Iran cover.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"did-trump-really-threaten-oman\">Did Trump really threaten Oman?<\/h2>\n<p>At a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, a reporter asked Trump what he thought of the idea of Oman and Iran overseeing trade through the strategic waterway.<\/p>\n<p>When the US president replied by seemingly threatening to \u201cblow up\u201d the close ally, with which Washington has had relations for more than 200 years, there was initial speculation that he might have misspoken and said \u201cOman\u201d instead of \u201cIran\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>However, the US Department of State later shared the comment on social media, with a transcript of the quote that referred to Oman, a country of 5.3 million people.<\/p>\n<p>Oman has not publicly said anything suggesting it intends to join Iran in controlling the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n<p>Iran\u2019s Foreign Ministry spokesman \u2060Esmaeil Baghaei on Thursday expressed solidarity with Oman, saying Iran stands in solidarity with Oman after \u201cUS officials\u2019 threats\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Critics called the threat reckless. Raed Jarrar, the advocacy director at the US-based rights group DAWN, likened the US president\u2019s comments to those of a \u201cmafia boss\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe UN Charter prohibits the threat of force against any state, and that prohibition binds the United States exactly as it binds everyone else,\u201d Jarrar told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThreatening to \u2018blow up\u2019 an Arab country because its waters happen to sit along an oil route Washington wants reopened is the same lawless logic that produced this war in February, and it is the clearest possible signal that any ceasefire this administration brokers will hold only until the next time the president loses his temper at a cabinet meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Samir Puri, a visiting lecturer in war studies at King\u2019s College in London, said Trump\u2019s threat to Oman was \u201creally surprising\u201d and warned that it would \u201csend shockwaves across the region\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOman has played a skilful regional hand in trying to stay apart from some of the conflicts and offering mediation support,\u201d Puri told Al Jazeera, adding: \u201cI can\u2019t see how bombing Oman would necessarily change Iran\u2019s calculus [on Hormuz].\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"how-are-us-iran-talks-progressing\">How are US-Iran talks progressing?<\/h2>\n<p>Trump\u2019s comments come as negotiations for a long-term ceasefire with Iran have stalled, with repeated <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/liveblog\/2026\/5\/27\/iran-war-live-israel-kills-31-in-lebanon-tehran-blasts-us-truce-violation\">military flare-ups<\/a> deepening mistrust between the two sides. Since a temporary ceasefire was announced on April 8, followed by direct talks in Islamabad on April 11 and 12 that collapsed, the two sides have exchanged a volley of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/5\/21\/iran-reviews-us-proposal-to-end-war-as-pakistan-steps-up-mediation-efforts\">proposals and counter-proposals<\/a> for peace via mediator Pakistan. Meanwhile, Iran has continued to control shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, while US forces have enforced a corresponding blockade on Iranian ports.<\/p>\n<p>Neither the US nor Iran has announced that the ceasefire has collapsed.<\/p>\n<p>However, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/5\/27\/us-iran-have-launched-multiple-attacks-during-ceasefire-a-timeline\">military flare-ups continue<\/a> in the region.<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Iran\u2019s semiofficial Tasnim news agency reported that four ships, one of them a United Kingdom tanker, had turned off their radars and attempted to pass the Strait of Hormuz. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded by firing warning shots.<\/p>\n<p>The IRGC also said it struck a US airbase in response to an early morning attack by US forces on a site near the airport in Iran\u2019s Bandar Abbas. The US described its attacks as \u201cdefensive\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Also on Thursday, the Kuwaiti military said air defences were \u201cconfronting hostile missile and drone attacks\u201d. The IRGC did not specify the target of the attack, but reports suggest it was aimed at a US base.<\/p>\n<p>Trump has also recently sought to tie the peace negotiations to a commitment by regional allies, as well as Pakistan, to sign up to the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/video\/newsfeed\/2026\/5\/25\/trump-links-iran-negotiations-to-expansion-of-abraham-accords\">Abraham Accords<\/a> to normalise ties with Israel, something the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan did during his first term in 2020. Experts say it is highly unlikely that Pakistan or Saudi Arabia would agree to do this without an agreement from Israel for the creation of a Palestinian state, something Israel has refused to do.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-has-oman-s-role-been-in-the-us-iran-war\">What has Oman\u2019s role been in the US-Iran war?<\/h2>\n<p>Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi was a key mediator in US-Iran nuclear talks before the war on Iran began. Just before the US-Israeli joint attack on Tehran in February, Albusaidi had been meeting US officials, including Vice President JD Vance, to facilitate negotiations about the future of Tehran\u2019s nuclear programme.<\/p>\n<p>During a meeting with Vance in Washington, DC, on February 27, the day before the war on Iran began, Albusaidi said the talks had resulted in \u201ccreative and constructive ideas and proposals\u201d, leading to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/2\/28\/peace-within-reach-as-iran-agrees-no-nuclear-material-stockpile-oman-fm\">unprecedented progress<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Hours later, however, Trump shockingly announced the US had attacked Iran because \u201che had a feeling\u201d that Iran would strike first, claiming negotiations over its nuclear programme had stalled. Oman\u2019s foreign minister <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/3\/3\/trump-admin-offers-scant-evidence-on-iranian-threat-in-america-first-war\">pushed back<\/a>\u00a0on the characterisation that Iran was an \u201cimminent threat\u201d to the US, maintaining that \u201csignificant progress\u201d had been made in the nuclear talks.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike other US allies in the Gulf, such as Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE, Oman does not host US forces. It was nevertheless dragged into the conflict when Iran launched a flurry of attacks on US military assets and energy infrastructure across the Gulf region in the early days of the war. The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/3\/1\/more-blasts-rock-dubai-doha-and-manama-as-iran-targets-us-assets-in-gulf\">Duqm commercial port<\/a>, located in Al Wusta governorate in central Oman, was struck by two drones on March 1. A fuel tank at the port was also hit in a drone attack two days later.<\/p>\n<p>At the time, Trump expressed solidarity with the Gulf country, saying: \u201cIran is hitting countries that had nothing to do with what is going on.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"why-is-oman-important-for-a-permanent-resolution-of-the-us-iran-war\">Why is Oman important for a permanent resolution of the US-Iran war?<\/h2>\n<p>Seloom, from the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, said Oman is \u201cone Gulf state that is simultaneously a US security partner and Iran\u2019s most trusted Arab interlocutor\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn peacetime, that ambiguity is an asset. In wartime, it becomes a liability, which is precisely the inversion now playing out,\u201d he told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n<p>The analyst argued that joint Iran-Oman control over Hormuz was \u201cmore posture than probability\u201d. \u201cOman\u2019s real interest is not co-owning Iran\u2019s blockade; it is brokering the strait\u2019s reopening,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Still, according to Seloom, the prospect of Iran and Oman jointly shaping the future of the Strait of Hormuz alarms the US president for three reasons: \u201cIt would turn Iran\u2019s grip on the chokepoint into a permanent post-war fact rather than a temporary act of war; it would set a precedent that littoral states [those bordering a large body of water] can metre and monetise an international waterway, eroding the freedom-of-navigation principle the United States underwrites worldwide; and it would hand Tehran a strategic win that outlasts any ceasefire.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Oman\u2019s relevance on three counts \u2013 geographically, diplomatically and strategically \u2013 therefore thrusts it to the forefront of the conflict, as its scope evolves into a larger geopolitical struggle for control over one of the world\u2019s most economically critical maritime chokepoints, experts say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>United States President Donald Trump has threatened longtime ally Oman with military force if it gets involved in the dispute over shipping access to the Strait of Hormuz, as Washington\u2019s war on Iran once again risks engulfing the Middle East. Trump\u2019s threat on Wednesday to \u201cblow up\u201d Oman came as Muscat reportedly held talks with &#8230; <a title=\"Why has Trump threatened to bomb Oman, amid Iran war escalation?\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2026\/05\/28\/why-has-trump-threatened-to-bomb-oman-amid-iran-war-escalation\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Why has Trump threatened to bomb Oman, amid Iran war escalation?\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6936,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6935","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6935"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6935\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}