General Discussion

Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker off Dubai on early on Tuesday, after President Donald Trump warned the United States would obliterate Iran's energy plants and oil wells if it does not open the Strait of Hormuz.

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However, the Wall Street Journal reported Trump had told aides he is willing to end the military campaign even if the strait remains largely closed and leave a complex operation to reopen it for a later date. That helped oil prices retreat and lifted stock markets off their lows as investors hoped for some ​way for hostilities to end swiftly. [MKTS/GLOB]

Asked about the report, the White House referred ‌to comments made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who told Al Jazeera the strait would be open "one way or another" after the U.S. military operation.

The White House said Trump was ​considering asking Arab nations to pay for the cost of the war.