Bloomberg Surveillance · Tuesday, July 28, 2026
An analyst suggests that the US pause in strikes in the Strait of Hormuz may stem from a perceived lack of sufficient weaponry, potentially emboldening Iran. The decision to rely on Omani mediation for negotiations, rather than continued military action, is seen as a shift in strategy.
“The Trump administration made it clear that it was standing down because the United States does not have the weaponry to carry on. The Iranians now know that they have impunity.”
“All of the reporting from the advice that the President has gotten from the Secretary and I'm sorry, not the Secretary of State, the Chairman of the Joint Use of Staff, as well as as Admiral Bradley Cooper, the head of Sencom, was that we were running out of munitions and that the bombing in the Strait had diminishing returns, so that the President called it off and is now relying on the Oman Channel, where the real negotiations are underway.”