Monday marked 60 days since the United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding calling for a wider peace deal within that timeframe. No concrete plans to end the war exist. The conflict has now stretched 24 weeks.
President Trump threatened Monday to bomb Oman if the country "gets in the way" of U.S. efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Fox News. Earlier that same day, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tehran had reached an agreement with Oman regarding future shipping routes in the strait.
The war's impact on global oil markets continued Monday. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 2.7% to $90.87. Last month alone, Brent zigzagged between $72 and $102 as hopes rose and fell that the two countries could reach a deal allowing oil tankers to freely exit the Persian Gulf. U.S. stocks fell in response. The S&P 500 dropped 0.5%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 272 points, and the Nasdaq slipped 0.3%.
Trump also contradicted Vice President JD Vance on Monday over what the administration's top priority in the conflict actually is. In a social media post Monday morning, Trump said the "number one Goal is, and always will be" that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. Last Thursday, Vance said on Fox News that "goal No. 1" was to "keep oil and gas cheap for Americans all over our country," with preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon listed as "goal No. 2."
Trump had previously rejected the idea that the domestic economy should factor into military decisions around Iran at all. "Not even a little bit," Trump said back in May when asked to what extent financial pressure on Americans was motivating him to strike a deal. "The only thing that matters when I'm talking about Iran, they can't have a nuclear weapon," he added. "I don't think about Americans' financial situation. I don't think about anybody. I think about one thing. We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon, that's all."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, asked about Vance's comments aboard Air Force One last Friday, said "both goals are equally as important to the president." She added that the administration had "done so much to keep the markets stable" while also ensuring Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. A White House official on Monday dismissed any characterization of a contradiction, saying the "media is attempting to drive a wedge" between the president and vice president "when they are on exactly the same page."
Trump's social media post came roughly eight minutes after Fox and Friends anchor Lawrence Jones called for "more clarity" from the White House on U.S. objectives in Iran following Vance's comments.
Meanwhile, Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and adviser, met Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a day after holding talks with Hamas leaders in Egypt to discuss the latest U.S.-backed peace proposal for the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu rejected that proposal last week.
A drone attack on the office of Masrour Barzani, the prime minister of Iraq's semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region, added another layer of tension Monday. Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei described the attack as "a highly suspicious development that requires vigilance and careful attention." Iran's top diplomat Abbas Araghchi also weighed in. "Nothing justifies the reckless attack on PM Barzani's office. Kurdish friends should be vigilant against false-flag ploys to sow discord between neighbours," Araghchi said on X.
