Politics is fast. We're faster. Sign up to the DC Insider newsletter for a front-row seat to Washington... and unlock 3 FREE months of DailyMail+ HERESee more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy PHILLIP NIETO, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 18:31 BST, 27 May 2026 | Updated: 19:31 BST, 27 May 2026
Donald Trump threatened to bomb a key US ally in the Middle East if they don't 'behave' while responding to a question about who will control the Strait of Hormuz.A reporter asked Trump at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday whether he was comfortable with Oman, a longtime US ally helping broker an end to the Iran war, jointly controlling the oil passageway with Tehran.'The strait will be open to everybody,' Trump said before being asked who would control it. 'Nobody is going to control it...We will watch over it.'Trump then turned his attention back to Oman, threatening to attack the country.'Oman will behave just like everybody else or we'll have to blow them up. They understand that. They'll be fine,' Trump added.It is unclear whether the President misspoke or why he would threaten to attack a Middle Eastern partner. The Daily Mail has contacted the White House for comment. The Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries one-fifth of the world's oil, has been shut since Iran closed it after US and Israeli airstrikes in late February. The strait's reopening remains a key sticking point in current peace talks. Oman has a history of serving as a friendly mediator between the White House and the Iranian regime. The country helped broker the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal and has acted as a US defense partner in the Middle East since 1980. Trump threatened to bomb Oman if they don't 'behave' while responding to a question about who will control the Strait of Hormuz It is unclear whether the President misspoke or why he would threaten to attack a Middle Eastern partner Oman is longtime US ally that is helping to negotiate an end to the Iran war Trump in May 2025 meets with Middle Eastern allies, including Oman Deputy Prime Minister Sayyid AsaadTrump also made military threats at Iran throughout the meeting as he discussed the ongoing negotiations with the regime.Trump made it clear that while Iran is desperate to come to the table, the United States is holding all the cards and will not accept a subpar deal.'Iran is very much intent, they want very much to make a deal,' Trump said.'So far, they haven't gotten there. We're not satisfied with it, but then we will be. We will be either that, or we'll have to just finish the job.'The President claimed that if Iran does not make concessions to the US then Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will 'finish them off.' 'I think we'll doing very well. They are starting to give us the things that they have to give us. If they do, that's great, and if they won't then the man on my left is going to finish them off,' Trump said before pointing towards a smirking Hegseth.Trump added that Iran's armed forces have been completely destroyed. However, intelligence reports indicate the regime has rebuilt most of its prewar firepower, including ballistic missiles and launch pads. Iran has seized on oil tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz by deploying speed boats The President claimed that Iran's armed forces have been completely neutralized by American military 'But the Navy is gone, as I've said 1000 times,' Trump stated. 'The Navy is gone, their Air Force is gone, everything's gone, and they're negotiating on fumes. 'But we'll see what happens. Maybe we have to go back and finish it. Maybe we don't right now.'Trump noted that his top envoys, including Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, are actively working on the situation, but insisted Tehran simply has no leverage left. The US is demanding that the regime agree to to abandon their pursuit of nuclear weapons and turn over their stockpile of highly enriched uranium.Tehran, however, wants Trump to lift the naval blockade on its ports, which has cut the regime off from its lucrative oil trade with China and other Southeast Asian countries.
