President Trump has been briefed on a draft memorandum of understanding with Iran that would fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz over the course of 60 days, U.S. officials confirmed Thursday. Under the document, Iran would loosen its grip on the waterway and the United States would pull back its naval blockade in synchronized steps until the strait returns to its pre-war status quo.
The synchronized-steps structure is the most detailed articulation yet of how a reopening would actually proceed. Rather than a single moment of resolution, the MOU envisions a phased, reciprocal de-escalation: each Iranian move to ease restrictions on transit would be matched by a corresponding U.S. move to lift elements of the blockade, reducing the risk that either side front-loads concessions. The framework follows Trump’s statement on May 24 that an agreement had been “largely negotiated.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio struck a measured tone Wednesday, saying the talks had made “some progress” and that Trump “prefers diplomacy and will give talks with Iran every chance to succeed.” The careful phrasing reflects an administration trying to keep expectations grounded after weeks in which apparent breakthroughs repeatedly collided with fresh flashpoints. The U.S. and Iran have been locked in a stalemate over the strait since agreeing to a fragile ceasefire in April.
Even as the framework advanced, Washington kept up pressure on the central dispute. The U.S. imposed sanctions Wednesday on an Iranian agency attempting to control shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — a direct response to Iran’s position, reported by its Fars news agency, that the strait “would remain under Iran’s management” per the latest exchanged text. Who ultimately controls the waterway, and whether Iran can levy transit tolls, remains the principal sticking point alongside Tehran’s enriched-uranium stockpile and frozen Iranian assets.
The diplomatic progress did not prevent renewed kinetic exchanges. U.S. forces struck an Iranian military site near Bandar Abbas on Thursday and intercepted several drones near the strait; Iran’s IRGC said it retaliated against the U.S. airbase that launched the strikes. The simultaneity — an MOU advancing on paper while strikes resumed on the ground — captures the defining tension of the conflict’s current phase.
For energy markets, the MOU’s phased design has a specific implication: even a signed agreement would not restore Hormuz traffic overnight. A 60-day synchronized reopening means supply would return gradually, and energy executives have repeatedly cautioned that full normalization of Middle East oil flows may not occur until 2027 given the scale of the disruption. Oil prices, down more than 10% since May 18, reflect a market pricing meaningful progress rather than imminent resolution.
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