WASHINGTON/CAIRO, May 8 (Reuters) – The United States said it expected an Iranian response as soon as later on Friday to its latest proposal to end the war in the Gulf, even as U.S. and Iranian forces traded fire in the region and the United Arab Emirates came under renewed attack.
Recent days have seen the biggest flare-ups in fighting in and around the Strait of Hormuz since a ceasefire began a month ago, despite signals from Washington and Tehran that they were closer than ever to a deal.
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“We should know something today,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in Rome. “We’re expecting a response from them… The hope is it’s something that can put us into a serious process of negotiation.” Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said Tehran was still weighing its response.
SPORADIC CLASHES IN STRAIT
Sporadic clashes between Iranian forces and U.S. vessels were taking place in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported. The Tasnim news agency later cited an Iranian military source saying the situation had calmed, but warning more clashes were possible “if Americans try to enter the Gulf again and cause trouble for Iranian vessels”.
The U.S. military said it struck two Iran-linked vessels attempting to enter an Iranian port, with a U.S. fighter jet hitting their smokestacks and forcing them to turn back.
Iran has largely blocked non-Iranian shipping through the strait since the war began, while the U.S. last month imposed a blockade on Iranian vessels.
Oil prices rose, with Brent crude futures above $101 a barrel, though still down more than 6% for the week, as traders weighed clashes against reports of diplomatic progress.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday the ceasefire was still holding despite the flare-ups. Washington is awaiting Tehran’s response to a U.S. proposal that would formally end the war before talks on more contentious issues, including Iran’s nuclear programme.
Trump said three U.S. Navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the strait, and the U.S. military fired back.
“Three World Class American Destroyers just transited, very successfully, out of the Strait of Hormuz, under fire. There was no damage done to the three Destroyers, but great damage done to the Iranian attackers,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He later played down the exchange. “They trifled with us today. We blew them away,” Trump told reporters in Washington.
