Iran Says It Would Reopen Strait of Hormuz in 2 Days

Iranian officials said progress has been made toward a deal with the United States that would allow Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days, according to a report published Nov. 2 by The New York Times. The same report said those officials are, at the same time, preparing the country for all-out war.

What did Iranian officials say about reopening the strait?

According to the Times, Iranian officials described "some progress" in talks aimed at reopening the strait, which the paper calls "a vital oil and gas shipping lane." The reported timeline — a reopening within two days of a deal being struck — was attributed to those officials in the same account. The Times report does not identify the officials by name or title, and no text of a draft agreement has been made public in the material reviewed for this story.

Why is Iran preparing for war while also negotiating?

The Times report places the diplomatic signal alongside a military one: Iranian officials spoke of negotiating progress "even as they prepare for all-out war," the paper reported. The juxtaposition is presented by the Times as deliberate — a dual track in which talks over the waterway proceed without any public indication that war preparations have been scaled back. The report does not specify what form that preparation is taking or against whom it is explicitly aimed.

"Iranian officials spoke of some progress in negotiating to reopen the strait, a vital oil and gas shipping lane, even as they prepare for all-out war." — The New York Times, Nov. 2, 2026

Why does the Strait of Hormuz matter to global shipping?

The Times describes the strait in a single phrase: a vital oil and gas shipping lane. Any closure or reopening timeline attached to it carries weight for energy markets because tankers moving crude and liquefied natural gas from Gulf producers pass through the narrow passage between Iran and Oman. The report under review does not include volume figures, price data, or a list of which producers or buyers would be affected by a prolonged closure, and none are cited here as a result.

What is still unclear about the reported deal?

The Times account leaves several questions open. It does not say what the United States would offer or concede in exchange for Iran reopening the strait, nor does it specify what triggered the current restrictions on passage in the first place. It also does not say when talks began, who is representing each side, or whether a final agreement has a target date beyond the two-day reopening window attributed to Iranian officials. Those gaps mean the reported progress remains a claim from one side of the negotiation rather than a confirmed outcome.

What happens next

The Times report gives no indication of a scheduled follow-up round of talks or a public statement expected from Washington. Until either government publishes terms or a timeline beyond what Iranian officials have described, the two-day reopening figure stands as an Iranian characterization of the state of talks, not a confirmed agreement.