Speaking in the Oval Office on Thursday, US President Donald Trump said he believed the war with Iran would end “pretty soon” and that Tehran “can’t go much longer.” He acknowledged that while the United States possesses a “virtually unlimited” supply of certain powerful munitions, inventories of other weapons are “a little bit tighter.” The remarks came after five months of military operations that, according to a Reuters report, have seen the US Army use a significant portion of its global stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles.

Viewed from Washington, the administration sought to downplay concerns over ammunition levels. Trump insisted the country has “massive amounts” of ammunition and threatened lengthy prison sentences for officials who leak information about stockpiles. He said defence companies are building new production plants, including facilities for Patriot and Tomahawk missiles. US media reports, however, cited a Cabinet meeting in which the president allegedly confronted Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth over shortages, and CNN reported that the military had expended nearly 80 per cent of its THAAD interceptor missiles and about half of its Patriot interceptors. The White House press secretary denied any such confrontation.

Iranian officials projected defiance. Acting Defence Minister Brigadier General Seyed Majid Ibn Reza said the armed forces are ready to give a “crushing and decisive response” to any threat, while Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused Washington of “theatre diplomacy.” At the same time, Tehran and Muscat signalled progress on a separate track: Iran’s foreign ministry said a joint statement with Oman on a maritime route through the Strait of Hormuz was being finalised, and a vice-minister stated that a significant part of the new route lies in Iranian territorial waters. Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, warned of imminent coordinated attacks from Iraqi militias and Yemen’s Houthis on its energy infrastructure and airports, according to a senior Saudi official.

Trump described the strait as “sort of open right now” under a US naval blockade but cautioned that Iran could still “shoot something or drop a mine.” He said he is involved in negotiations and that a deal “could be soon.” Axios reported that the US, Iran and Oman were close to a 60-day opening arrangement, though no announcement had been made. Indirect talks through mediators were said to be in a final stage, with the possibility that Washington and Tehran would then return to a memorandum of understanding signed in June that collapsed weeks later. The dossier remains fluid, with no formal agreement concluded and Iran’s parliament examining a draft bill that would ban vessels from “hostile” states from transiting the waterway.