The Deal To Reopen The Strait Of Hormuz Is Yet To Come. Iran’s Chief Negotiator Is Taking On Trump

Iran's top negotiator is accusing President Donald Trump of "theater diplomacy" and calling him to "acknowledge the facts and fulfill your commitments," as negotiations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz continue.

"'Massive attack coming... wait, never mind, they want to negotiate.' That's theater diplomacy on loop," Mohamed Ghalibaf said in a social media publication.

"Using bullying + broken promises + fake news as leverage is a failed strategy. Acknowledge the facts and fulfill your commitments. We don't need more theater," he added.

The remarks come as a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz appears to be imminent but still continues to be elusive.

Trump, on his end, told press on Thursday that a deal had not been reached but claimed the waterway is "sort of open right now."

"We control it, but they can always shoot something, they always have something, or drop a mine, and if you have one mine out there you sort of mess things up, because people don't want to take their billion-dollar boats and accidentally get hit by a mine, but I think we're doing very well," Trump said in the Oval Office. He also said the he is involved in negotiations with Iran even though Tehran insists it is only talking with Oman.

Iranian state outlet Fars claimed on Thursday that the deal would exclude American and Israeli ships from transiting.

The outlet, according to an account from CNBC, claimed that cargo or other vessels from Israel would also be prevented from passing through the waterway. "Countries and individuals that have caused damage to Iran" would fall into the same category until harm made to the country is "compensated," the outlet added, citing a member of the country's parliament.

Iran will also issue penalties of up to 20% of the value of the vessel's cargo if the new rules are violated. They are a framework to resume negotiations between Tehran and Washington, which would begin a new 60-day period.

The plan has not been publicly confirmed by Iran, and the White House has not commented on it either.

Shipping through Hormuz remains subdued in the meantime. Only two vessels went through it on Wednesday, down from eight the day before, according to Kpler. Before the war, the figure stood between 130 and 140 a day. Only one traveled through the Bab el-Mandeb strait, compared to 20 the previous day, as tensions between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia continue as well.