Peace talks to end the US-Iran war will resume on Monday in Pakistan, President Donald Trump said on Sunday.
“My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations,” he said in a Truth Social post.
During a weekend when tensions rose following Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz in response to US blockages of its ports, the speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said in a televised address that Tehran was simultaneously engaged in diplomacy and ready for military confrontation.
Trump accused Iran of committing a “serious violation” of the two-week ceasefire that began on April 8, according to ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl.
In a post on X, Karl said Trump still believes he can get a peace deal, quoting him as saying: “It will happen. One way or another. The nice way or the hard way. It’s going to happen. You can quote me.”
On Saturday, Iran’s military declared that the Strait of Hormuz “has been returned to its previous state, and this strategic waterway is under strict management and control by the Armed Forces.”
In a statement to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, the spokesman insisted that until the US ends restrictions on the free movement of vessels to and from Iran, the situation in the Strait of Hormuz “will remain tightly controlled and unchanged from its previous status.”
Also on Saturday, US Central Command shared an image on its X account of USS Canberra patrolling the Arabian Sea during the blockade.
It said: “Since commencement of the blockade, 23 ships have complied with direction from U.S. forces to turn around. American forces are enforcing a maritime blockade against ships entering or exiting Iranian ports and coastal areas.”
Opening the strait has been a central demand since the start of a fragile ceasefire earlier this month and amid the ongoing negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
The strategic Strait of Hormuz is a narrow chokepoint linking the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and a major artery for global shipments of oil and natural gas.
