President Donald Trump told aides he is willing to end the US military campaign against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, the Wall Street Journal reported March 30, citing administration officials — a potential pivot in war aims that rattled financial markets Tuesday.
Trump and his team concluded that an operation to immediately reopen the strait would push the conflict beyond his preferred four-to-six-week timeline. The administration instead plans to achieve its core objectives — crippling Iran’s navy and missile capabilities — wind down active hostilities, and then pressure Tehran diplomatically to restore free navigation through the waterway.
If diplomacy falls short, Washington would press European and Gulf allies to lead any effort to reopen the strait, officials told the Journal. Military options remain under active consideration but are not Trump’s immediate priority.
Markets react
News of the potential pivot triggered an immediate response in financial markets Tuesday morning. Nasdaq futures climbed 1.4% within 40 minutes of the report spreading on social media, US crude oil fell 3%, and Bitcoin rose back above $67,000 as traders priced in the prospect of an earlier end to active hostilities.
Ghalibaf’s pre-market warning
Roughly 16 hours before the WSJ story surfaced on social media, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf posted on X warning his 14.2 million followers that pre-market breaking news is “often just a setup for profit-taking.” He advised followers to trade against any market move the news triggers — short if it pumps, go long if it dumps.
Trump confirmed March 30 that Washington has been engaging with Ghalibaf, calling him part of a “more reasonable regime.” The speaker has publicly rejected that characterization — on March 29, he stated that Iran could not be forced into submission, and on March 30 he accused Washington of using diplomacy as cover for a planned ground invasion.
The 64-year-old hardliner and former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander has served as speaker of Iran’s Parliament since 2020 and has emerged as a key power node after Israeli strikes eliminated much of Iran’s senior leadership.
Gulf states push back
The Associated Press reported Monday that Gulf states — particularly the UAE, Kuwait, and Bahrain — urged Trump to continue military operations until Iran no longer poses a strategic threat to the region, arguing the campaign has not yet weakened Iran enough after nearly a month of strikes.
The UAE, which has absorbed more than 2,300 missile and drone attacks from Iran, has pushed hardest for sustained operations and has called for a ground invasion. Saudi Arabia separately argues that ending hostilities now would fall short of a deal that can guarantee long-term regional security.
Netanyahu floats pipeline alternative
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proposed March 30 that a long-term solution to the Hormuz crisis may not require military action at all. In an interview with Newsmax, Netanyahu suggested rerouting Gulf state energy pipelines westward across Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea and Mediterranean — bypassing the Iranian chokepoint entirely.
Read: Saudi Pipeline Achieves 7 Million Barrels Per Day, Redefining Oil Export Routes
Deadline looms
Trump had previously set an April 6 deadline for Tehran to reopen the strait or face strikes on Iranian energy and water infrastructure. Iran has rejected those demands and continued attacking regional shipping — on Tuesday, a Kuwaiti crude tanker took a direct hit while anchored at Dubai port, sparking a fire onboard. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said the vessel was fully loaded at the time and warned of a potential oil spill.
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