'Me and the Ayatollah': President Trump on who will run the Strait of Hormuz

Oil prices dropped on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had instructed the Department of War to pause attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure for a period of five days after "very good and productive conversations with Iran." Iran, meanwhile, has reportedly said that no such conversation has taken place. Trump believes that Iran has not yet been informed about the talks due to "poor communication."

When asked to comment on Iran's denial of negotiations with the U.S., Trump said, "We have had very, very strong talks, and we'll see where they lead. We have major points of agreement. I would say almost all points of agreement. Perhaps that hasn't been conveyed. Communication, as you know, has been blown to pieces. They're unable to talk to each other." Later, during an interaction with a reporter, Trump signalled a possible end to the Middle East conflict that started on February 28 with a joint U.S.-Israeli military operation against Iran, dubbed 'Operation Epic Fury'.

When asked about the Strait of Hormuz that Iran has been leveraging in their retaliation to U.S. and Israeli attacks, Trump said, "That'll be opened very soon if this works." Asked about a timeline, Trump said, "immediately." The President then went on to claim that if the negotiations are fruitful, the flow of oil tankers through the Strait will be "jointly controlled." "Maybe me. Me and the Ayatollah, whoever the next Ayatollah is," Trump said when asked about who will control the critical chokepoint. 

However, given the numerous times Trump has changed his rhetoric, including threatening Iran with attacks on its energy infrastructure just a day before announcing the ceasefire, the possibility of escalation remains open. A day before claiming about the "very productive conversations," Trump had demanded Iran open the Strait within 48 hours. In a post on Truth Social, he wrote that the United States will "hit and obliterate" Iran's power plants if they fail to meet the demand.

Adding to the delicate nature of Trump's ceasefire announcement is his dislike for the Iranian regime, including the newly appointed Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. Iran has also vowed to retaliate by attacking crucial infrastructure in the Gulf States if the U.S. goes through with its threat. Meanwhile, Israel has claimed that Trump plans to leverage the "mighty achievements" of the U.S. and Israeli military to strike a deal with Tehran. In a video statement released by his office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that there was a possibility of "leveraging the mighty achievements obtained by the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) and the U.S. military, in order to realize the goals of the war in a deal — a deal that will preserve our vital interests."