Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on Thursday vowed to protect the Islamic Republic's nuclear and missile capabilities, issuing a defiant statement as the United States presses for a broader agreement to solidify a fragile ceasefire. In remarks read by a state television anchor, Khamenei declared that the only place Americans belonged in the Persian Gulf was "at the bottom of its waters" and said a "new chapter" was being written in the region's history. Khamenei has not appeared in public since assuming the role of supreme leader following the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the opening airstrikes of the conflict.

The statement comes as Iran's economy faces severe strain on multiple fronts. A U.S. Navy blockade has halted Iranian oil tankers from reaching international markets, and Iran continues to restrict passage through the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately one-fifth of the world's crude oil flows. The global benchmark, Brent crude, reached as high as $126 a barrel on Thursday, and the average price of gasoline in the United States climbed to $4.39 per gallon on Friday, up 34 cents from a week earlier, according to AAA.

Iran's approximately 90 million residents have been cut off from the global internet for most of 2026 in what authorities have described as a wartime measure, one of the longest and strictest such national shutdowns on record. The blackout is estimated to cost the Iranian economy $30 million to $40 million daily in direct losses, with indirect losses likely double that figure, according to a member of Iran's Chamber of Commerce. About 10 million Iranians hold jobs dependent on internet connectivity, the country's communications minister has said.

The United States is pursuing a diplomatic initiative it calls a "maritime freedom construct" aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping. A State Department cable sent Tuesday instructed American diplomats in most countries — excluding those in Belarus, China, Cuba and Russia — to seek host government support for the plan, which would maintain the blockade on Iranian ports while coordinating allied pressure against Iranian efforts to disrupt energy flows. The initiative is being led jointly by the State Department and U.S. Central Command.

President Trump, in an interview with Newsmax, again claimed the United States had won the war but said he wanted to "win by a bigger margin," asserting that Iran's navy and air force had been destroyed. The administration is also conducting a review of U.S. troop levels in Europe, with questions raised about the future of forces stationed in Germany, Italy and Spain, countries that have at times clashed with Washington over the use of their bases for Iran-related military operations.