Iran rejected new peace talks with the United States, its state news agency reported on Sunday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump had said he was sending envoys to Pakistan for talks and would strike Iran unless it accepted his terms.
“Iran stated that its absence from the second round of talks stems from what it called Washington’s excessive demands, unrealistic expectations, constant shifts in stance, repeated contradictions, and the ongoing naval blockade, which it considers a breach of the ceasefire,” Iran’s official IRNA news agency wrote.
Trump said the U.S. military had taken control of an Iranian-flagged cargo ship by blowing a hole in its engine room.
“We have full custody of their ship, and are seeing what’s on board!” he wrote on social media.
The United States has kept a blockade of Iranian ports in place, while Iran has lifted and then reimposed its own blockade of marine traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which before the war began almost two months ago handled roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.
Iran’s announcement that it would walk away from negotiations came after Trump said his envoys would arrive in Islamabad on Monday evening, one day before a two-week ceasefire ends.
VANCE TO AGAIN LEAD TALKS
A White House official had said the U.S. delegation would be headed by Vice President JD Vance, who led the war’s first peace talks a week ago, and also include Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner. Trump had separately told ABC News and MS Now that Vance would not go.
The apparent diplomatic setback could set the stage for a renewed surge in oil prices when markets reopen after the weekend.
Now in its eighth week, the war has created the most severe shock to global energy supplies in history, sending oil prices surging because of the de facto closure of the strait.
Thousands of people have been killed by U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and in an Israeli invasion of Lebanon conducted in parallel since the war began on February 28. Iran responded to the attacks with missiles and drones against its Arab neighbours that host U.S. bases.
Iran’s chief negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, had earlier said the two sides had made progress but were still far apart on nuclear issues and the strait.
Pakistan has served as the main mediator, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke by phone on Sunday with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian. Sharif’s office said Pezeshkian had thanked Pakistan for its mediation efforts, in a readout of the call that made no mention of Iran rejecting the next round of talks.
European allies, repeatedly slammed by Trump for not aiding his war effort, worry that Washington’s inexperienced U.S. negotiating team is pushing for a swift, superficial deal that would grab headlines but leave months or years of technically complex follow‑on talks.
TANKERS REPORTED TURNED BACK AT STRAIT
Two liquefied petroleum gas tankers attempted to transit the Strait on Saturday morning but made a U‑turn after reaching waters south of Larak Island, MarineTraffic vessel tracking data showed.
Iran’s semi‑official Tasnim news agency reported that the vessels were turned back by Iran’s armed forces. One of the tankers – the Angola‑flagged LPG tanker G Summer – later exited the Gulf on a second attempt on Saturday evening, signaling “China owner,” according to the data.
Friday’s announcement that the strait would reopen caused the sharpest one-day drop in oil prices in years and boosted stock markets to all-time highs.
Amrita Sen, founder of the Energy Aspects think tank, predicted oil prices would rise on Monday when traders returned to their desks having realised they might have been overly optimistic.
“Events over the weekend with Iran firing on merchant vessels and shutting the strait again highlight just how precarious the situation is,” Sen said.
PRESSURE MOUNTS ON TRUMP
Trump on Sunday also renewed his threat to hit Iran’s power plants and bridges, continuing a pattern of such warnings throughout the war.
He abruptly announced the ceasefire two weeks ago, just hours after declaring that Iran’s “whole civilisation will die tonight.”
Iran has said that if the United States were to attack its civilian infrastructure it would hit power stations and desalination plants of Gulf Arab neighbours.
Pressure for a way out of the war has mounted on Trump as his fellow Republicans prepare to defend narrow majorities in Congress in the November midterm elections, with U.S. gasoline prices high, inflation rising and his own approval ratings down.
On Sunday, Pakistan appeared to be preparing for new talks. Two giant U.S. C-17 cargo planes landed at an air base on Sunday afternoon, carrying security equipment and vehicles in preparation for the U.S. delegation’s arrival, two Pakistani security sources said.
Municipal authorities in the capital city of Islamabad halted public transport and heavy-goods traffic through the city. Barbed wire was rolled out near the Serena Hotel, where last week’s talks were held. The hotel told all guests to leave.