Donald Trump claims the Strait of Hormuz will reopen soon, jointly controlled by the US and Iran, emphasizing that the US is negotiating with senior Iranian officials but not with the new Supreme Leader.
On 23 Mar 2026 GMT+7, Donald Trump, President of the United States, told CNN that the Strait of Hormuz will "open soon," adding that he wants this vital shipping route to be under joint control between the US and Iran.
When CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked when the strait was expected to reopen, Trump said, "It will open soon," if negotiations with Iran continue swiftly.
"It will be joint control," he added. "Between me and the Ayatollah—whoever that Ayatollah is, or whoever becomes the next Ayatollah."
"And there will be very serious regime change," Trump said, referring to the early attacks in the conflict that eliminated many senior Iranian leaders. "Regime change is already happening automatically."
Trump then hinted that talks over the past weekend showed positive signs toward ending the conflict. "We are dealing with some very reasonable and reliable people," he told Collins. "They know who they are, they are highly respected, and perhaps one of them is the person we are looking for."
Earlier, Donald Trump claimed that the US and Iran had engaged in talks over the past two days, which went well. He announced a five-day delay of strikes against Iran's power plants and energy infrastructure to allow talks to proceed throughout the week.
However, Iran later denied that the Tehran government was negotiating with Washington and accused Trump of making such claims merely to try to reduce rapidly rising global oil prices.
Nonetheless, Trump told CNN that the US is talking with "senior figures" within Iran's regime to try to end the war, but not with "Mojtaba Khamenei," the new Supreme Leader.
Trump said the US is negotiating with "one senior person," but stressed, "Remember, we've eliminated the top leaders—the first, second, and most of the third tier. But we are dealing with a man I believe is highly respected and a leader. You know it's tough because they've been wiped out... we've wiped out everyone."
Trump also said the US and Iran have reached agreement on 15 points—although he detailed only one: that Iran has pledged not to develop nuclear weapons, something Trump had stated previously.
"I can say everything is going perfectly," he later added, noting that Iran initiated the talks. "I think if they keep it up, it will solve the problem, end the conflict, and I think it will end very concretely."
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Source:cnn