President Donald Trump Tuesday stated that the Navy has removed or detonated all mines from international waters in the Strait of Hormuz. The president made the direct threat to the Iranian government in remarks to coincide with the White House’s, saying any ship or boat trying to install new explosive devices in the region’s key waterway will be destroyed upon arrival.

The president stressed on the impartial and active zero tolerance policy in regards to any future placement of mines. The United States military has been using the cutting-edge orbital surveillance technology of the United States Space Force to closely track each square inch of the strait, ensuring the security of the global energy supply chain, he said.

Direct combat between U.S. and Iranian military forces has remained suspended for a few weeks but both countries have been continuing to attack civilian ships in the narrow shipping strait recently as they compete for the upper hand. The impacts of these major disruptions have had significant effects on international energy markets which the U.S. Department of Energy is closely tracking. Tracking data recently showed that on Monday, the volume of oil passing through the strait fell to five million bpd from over 20 million bpd before the conflict escalated, or about 1/5 of the world’s daily consumption.

Meanwhile, regional diplomacy has been quietly picking up pace in the current military stand-off. Recently, delegates from the Foreign Ministry of Oman and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran met in Tehran to talk about a step-by-step plan for controlling commercial transport, and reducing tensions in the region.

After the meetings, a joint statement affirmed that Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi discussed the issue of establishment of a functional and feasible temporary navigational corridor. The proposed framework also provides for a project to be undertaken together, which is specifically oriented towards the elimination of the remaining mines in the common watercourse.

The two nations plan to keep up technical talks to establish a permanent route for ships and fix who will regulate the Strait of Hormuz in the future. The discussions are continuing to build effective mechanisms for information sharing, maritime traffic management and provision of the required security services, while both sides reiterate the necessity to broaden the discussions with other Gulf water fronting states.