Top US officials on Tuesday expressed optimism, indicating that there is a chance of Strait of Hormuz reopening soon with Washington and Tehran closing in on a deal.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Tuesday that the deal could be reached by 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.
"Even though things are still a little dicey there over the past few days, we’ve (seen) quite a few ships coming out even now," Bessent said. "So you know, I’d expect the energy prices to settle back down, which, as I said, will be good for the entire world."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday said Iran and Oman have made progress in discussions on getting more vessels through the waterway. However, no final agreement has been reached, he told reporters at the State Department.
"There's been progress made in those talks, but not finality yet. We're hoping that will happen very shortly," Rubio added.
Earlier in the day, a report by the New York Times cited Iranian officials and reported that the Iran-Oman deal would require ships crossing the strait to pay "service fees". Both Iran and Oman would share the revenue equally.
However, a US official cited by the same report stated that Iranian claims are not accurate and asserted that ship routes given nod by Washington would not require Tehran's approval or include tolls.
