Trump extends ceasefire indefinitely as Iran says it won’t join talks until U.S. ends the blockade
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he would extend a ceasefire with Iran hours before it was due to expire, pledging to refrain from attacks until discussions with Tehran “are concluded, one way or the other.”
Trump said Iran’s leadership was “seriously fractured” and needed to “come up with a unified proposal.”
Trump made the announcement of an indefinite ceasefire as talks scheduled to take place between U.S. and Iranian delegations in the Pakistani capital were postponed amid uncertainty about the broad strokes of a deal. Vice President JD Vance and other U.S. negotiators remained in Washington instead of leaving for Islamabad as originally planned.
The decision to extend the ceasefire marked a significant shift for Trump, who earlier in the day had said that if a deal was not reached by Wednesday, he expected to “be bombing, because that is a better attitude to go in with.” He added that the military was “raring to go.”
His reversal had the effect of handing the initiative to Tehran, which has reveled in its ability to dial up pressure on global energy markets through its stranglehold over the Strait of Hormuz. And it was the latest measure of Trump’s appetite for renewed conflict, which for now appears low.
In his announcement about the extension, Trump said he had instructed the U.S. military to “hold” an attack on the country but ordered U.S. forces to continue a naval blockade on ports in Iran — and to, “in all other respects, remain ready and able” to act.
Trump said he made the decision to hold off on attacking at the request of Pakistani officials mediating the talks. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a statement on X thanking Trump “for graciously accepting our request to extend the ceasefire to allow ongoing diplomatic efforts to take their course.”
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, said Tuesday evening that talks would resume only after Washington ends the blockade.
“I think the next round of the negotiations will take place in Islamabad,” he said. He called the naval blockade a violation of the ceasefire and reiterated that lifting it is a condition for new negotiations to take place.
The U.S. started the war, Iravani said, and if Washington wants to return to the negotiating table “and find a political solution, they will find us ready.” [Continue reading…]