US envoy says Washington ready for prolonged standoff with Iran

The significance here is expectation-setting: a senior US official is publicly pricing in a long deadlock rather than a near-term resolution, which reframes the Strait of Hormuz disruption as a persistent condition rather than a temporary shock. Energy markets and shipping insurers, not just diplomats, are the audience that matters, since any prolonged shortfall in Hormuz transit keeps risk premia embedded in freight and crude logistics. The open question is whether Tehran treats the envoy's timeline as pressure to negotiate or as confirmation that Washington expects talks to stall — and whether shipping volumes recover before any deal does.