US, Iran mull over second meeting to revive ceasefire talks as Hormuz blockade takes hold

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WASHINGTON – The United States and Iran are in discussions about holding another round of negotiations in hopes of cementing a longer-term ceasefire, even as President Donald Trump began a US naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to raise pressure on Tehran.

The goal is to hold fresh talks before a two-week ceasefire announced on April 7 expires next week, people familiar with the matter said. One idea is to return to Islamabad for a second round, though other venues have also been discussed, they said.

Negotiating teams from the US and Iran could return to Islamabad later this week, five sources told Reuters on April 14.

A source involved in the talks said a date had yet to be decided, but both countries could return as early as the end of this week.

“No firm date has been set, with the delegations keeping Friday through Sunday open,” a senior Iranian source said.

Two Pakistani sources with knowledge of the talks said Islamabad was communicating with the two sides about the timing of the next round, and the meeting would likely take place on the weekend.

“We have reached out to Iran, and we got a positive response that they will be open to a second round of talks,” a senior Pakistani government official said.

Mr Trump signalled his own openness to more talks earlier on April 13, saying Iran reached out to the US.

“We’ve been called this morning by the right people, the appropriate people, and they want to work a deal,” he said at the White House, without elaborating on who participated in the conversation. 

He once again claimed that negotiations failed due to Iran’s insistence on maintaining a nuclear programme.

Mr Trump said he was “sure” Iran will eventually agree to abandon its nuclear ambitions, and reiterated there would be no deal without that concession.

At the same time, he is pressing ahead with a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz as a way of ramping up pressure on the regime in Tehran. 

Mr Trump said the US would attack any Iranian vessels that approach US ships in the Strait of Hormuz, as his blockade took effect on April 13.

“Warning: If any of these ships come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED,” he said in a social media post.

He said the US would use the same tactics it did against alleged drug-running boats in the Caribbean Sea in recent months.

But a Chinese tanker sanctioned by the US for dealing with Iran passed through the Strait of Hormuz on April 14 despite the blockade, shipping data showed.

The Rich Starry is a medium-range tanker carrying about 250,000 barrels of methanol on board, according to the data. It loaded the cargo at its last port of call, the United Arab Emirates’ Hamriyah.

Mr Trump said again that there were countries willing to support the US mission in the Strait of Hormuz, but declined to name them, saying instead he would provide further details on April 14.

Iran slammed the blockade as a “grave violation” of its sovereignty.

“The imposition of a maritime blockade constitutes a grave violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Islamic republic of Iran,” Iran’s Ambassador to the UN Amir Saeid Iravani wrote to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The “unlawful” blockade also “constitutes a serious violation of the fundamental principles of the international law of the sea”, Mr Iravani added.

Fresh standoff

Mr Trump’s blockade is intensifying a global energy crisis in a six-week war that’s seen thousands of deaths across the region.

It marks the latest move by the US president to strong-arm Iran into easing its own chokehold over the Strait of Hormuz after talks in Pakistan on extending the ceasefire failed to reach a deal.

“We can’t let a country blackmail or extort the world,” Mr Trump said.

He also claimed, without evidence, that “many ships are heading to our country right now” to load up with US oil, and repeated that “we don’t use the strait, we don’t need the strait”.

Oil prices soared as investors braced for further supply shortages if the US blockade curtails the flow of Iranian oil to global markets. Prices remained choppy, though, as trading costs have surged, in turn sapping liquidity.

Brent crude traded near US$102 (S$130) per barrel while May US crude futures traded near US$103 a barrel in early trading in New York.

Iran has said it would target all ports in the Persian Gulf if its own shipping hubs are threatened, setting up a fresh standoff in waters that typically see flows of about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas.

The security of ports in the region is “either for everyone or for no one”, Iran’s armed forces said in a statement on April 13, according to the state-run IRIB News.

The US blocking the strait would be “an act of piracy,” it said, reiterating plans to permanently control the critical waterway even after the war.

Shortly before the deadline, the US published a notice to vessels in the region saying it would intercept, divert or capture vessels leaving Iran after that time. The note said neutral ships that have not called at Iran would not be impeded, though they may be searched for contraband cargo.

The US blockade will be “enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas”, according to a statement on April 12 from US Central Command, which said US forces would not impede vessels transiting Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports.

A British naval group that liaises between the military and shipping said it had been informed of the restrictions and added that additional guidelines, including routing, verification and authorised transit procedures were being developed.

Differences over nuclear pause

The negotiations in Islamabad broke down due to differences over the future of Iran’s nuclear programme, according to US officials.

The New York Times reported that the US and Iran traded proposals for a suspension of Iranian nuclear activities during weekend negotiations in Pakistan, but remain far apart on the length of any agreement.

Iran said on April 13 that it could suspend uranium enrichment for up to five years, an offer the Trump administration rejected, insisting on 20 years, according to two senior Iranian officials and one US official.

“The US must learn: You can’t dictate terms to Iran,” Iran’s former foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif posted on X. “It’s not too late to learn.”

While the US and Israel have paused the bombing of Iran – and Tehran has in turn stopped firing missiles at Gulf states – Israel has maintained its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah, a Tehran-backed militant group.

That ongoing offensive, which the Lebanese government says has killed more than 2,000 people, was a bone of contention while the terms of the US-Iran ceasefire struck last week were being ironed out.

Talks between Israel and the Lebanese government – which has long pledged to disarm Hezbollah without success – are set to take place this week. BLOOMBERG