President Donald Trump said that Iran’s “present” to the United States is letting eight oil tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
“They said, ‘To show you the fact that we’re real … we’re going to let you have eight boats of oil,’” Trump said of the Iranians at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Trump first mentioned a gift from the Iranians on Tuesday, but he did not specify it.
At his Cabinet meeting, he asked Special Envoy Steve Witkoff if he could reveal the present to the press.
“You can do anything you want,” Witkoff said, invoking laughs in the Cabinet room.
Trump said he didn’t think much of the gift until he heard a Fox anchor say the boats were seen traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
“I guess they were real,” he said. “I think they were Pakistani flags.”
Iran then agreed to allow two more boats through the strait, bringing the total to 10.
The tankers started sailing three days ago, he said.
Trump said this is evidence that negotiations are going well.
“I guess we were dealing with the right people,” he said.
