President Donald Trump said U.S. negotiators will head to Pakistan on Monday for one more round of talks with Iran, raising hopes of extending a fragile ceasefire set to run out by Wednesday, whilst Washington and Tehran remain in a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran didn’t immediately confirm the talks but its chief negotiator, parliament speaker Mohammed Bagher Qalibaf, said in an interview aired on state television late Saturday that “there can be no retreat in the sector of diplomacy,” while acknowledging a large gap remained between the perimeters.
The White House said Vice President JD Vance, who led the primary round of historic face-to-face talks over 21 hours last weekend, would lead the U.S. delegation to Pakistan with envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Pakistani authorities began tightening security in Islamabad. A regional official involved within the efforts said mediators were finalizing preparations and U.S. advance security teams were on the bottom. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to debate preparations with the media.
Iran on Saturday said it had received recent proposals from the USA. It was unclear whether either side had shifted stances on issues that derailed the last round of negotiations, including Iran’s nuclear enrichment program, its regional proxies and control over the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump’s announcement repeated his threats against Iranian infrastructure which have drawn widespread criticism and warnings of war crimes. If Iran doesn’t comply with the U.S.-proposed deal, “the USA goes to knock out each Power Plant, and each single Bridge, in Iran,” he wrote.
Iran says transits of the Strait of Hormuz are ‘unattainable’
Ships remain unable to transit the critical waterway amid threats from Iran and a U.S. blockade on ships heading to and from Iranian ports. Tons of of vessels were waiting at each end for clearance.
Get breaking National news
Get breaking Canada news delivered to your inbox because it happens so you will not miss a trending story.
One in all the worst global energy crises in a long time threatened to deepen. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil trade normally passes through the strait, together with critical supplies of fertilizer for the world’s farmers, natural gas and humanitarian supplies for places in dire need like Afghanistan and Sudan.
Iranian officials earlier on Sunday held firm that ships wouldn’t pass while the U.S. blockade remained in effect. “It’s unattainable for others to go through the Strait of Hormuz while we cannot,” Qalibaf said.
In his post about talks, Trump accused Iran of violating the ceasefire by firing at ships transiting the strait. Iran has called the U.S. blockade a violation, and foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei on Sunday called it an “act of aggression.”
Iran had announced the strait’s reopening after a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon took hold on Friday. But Iran said it might proceed enforcing its restrictions there after Trump said the U.S. blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a take care of the USA.
After a transient uptick in transit attempts on Saturday, Iran fired on two Indian-flagged merchant ships that were forced to show around, leading India to summon Iran’s ambassador over the “serious incident.” India noted that Iran earlier let several India-bound ships through.
For the Islamic Republic, the strait’s closure — imposed after the U.S. and Israel launched the Iran war on Feb. 28 during talks over Tehran’s nuclear program — is probably its strongest weapon, inflicting political pain on Trump. For the USA, the blockade squeezes Iran’s already weakened economy by denying it long-term money flow.
The war — now in its eighth week — has killed a minimum of 3,000 people in Iran, greater than 2,290 in Lebanon, 23 in Israel and greater than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon and 13 U.S. service members throughout the region have been killed.
Since most supplies to U.S. military bases within the Gulf region come through the strait, “Iran is set to take care of oversight and control over traffic through the strait until the war fully ends,” Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said late Saturday. Meaning Iran-designated routes, payment of fees and issuance of transit certificates.
The council has recently acted as Iran’s de facto top decision-making body.
Pakistan presses on diplomacy and Iran issues a warning
Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who spoke by phone with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday, has said his country is working to “bridge” differences between the U.S. and Iran.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh on Saturday told The Associated Press that the U.S. is “risking the entire ceasefire package” with its blockade.
Khatibzadeh said Iran won’t hand over its stock of 970 kilos (440 kilograms) of enriched uranium to the USA, calling the thought “a nonstarter.” The deputy minister didn’t address other proposals for the enriched uranium, saying only that “we’re ready to handle any concerns.”
–Magy reported from Cairo and Metz from Ramallah, West Bank. Munir Ahmed contributed to this report from Islamabad.
© 2026 The Canadian Press