The “present” that US President Donald Trump said Iran gave Washington was allowing the safe passage of a number of fuel tankers through the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, a senior Arab diplomat and a US official told The Times of Israel on Wednesday.
In trying to explain his decision to pursue talks with Iran, Trump told reporters on Tuesday that Tehran “did something yesterday that was amazing — they gave us a present… worth a tremendous amount of money… [it] arrived today.”
“They gave it to us, and they said they were going to give it. That meant one thing to me. [That we’re] dealing with the right people,” Trump said, declining to identify the gift beyond that it was oil and gas related and tied to the Strait of Hormuz.
The US official told The Times of Israel on Wednesday that when the Trump administration began passing along messages to Iran through mediators over the weekend in order to test whether a diplomatic off-ramp to the war was possible, it asked Tehran to make a gesture of goodwill.
In response, Iran agreed to allow a number of fuel tankers that weren’t tied to the US or Israel through the Strait of Hormuz in order to help calm global markets, the Arab official said.
The Arab official acknowledged that the safe passage of a small number of tankers was not likely to have a significant or long-term impact on global oil prices — a concession that Iran is not yet prepared to offer while US and Israeli strikes continue.
US President Donald Trump speaks with reporters during the swearing in ceremony for Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The limited impact of the “present” explains why Trump avoided specifying exactly what it was, the Arab official said.
Asked for comment, the White House referred The Times of Israel to press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s comments on the matter during a Wednesday press briefing.
“As far as tankers through the Strait, it’s something we’re tracking very closely,” Leavitt told reporters about the key shipping lane near Iran, without commenting further on the nature of the “present” described by Trump.
However, the press secretary said there is no “specific timeline” on when all tankers will be able to move freely.
“We’re going to see prices at the pump go back down,” Leavitt added, arguing the Trump administration’s prioritization of domestic energy production will help stabilize prices when the military operation in Iran is over.
