Tehran, Iran. Iran vowed to retaliate and rejected a new round of peace negotiations on Monday after the United States seized an Iranian cargo ship attempting to breach a US naval blockade, casting doubt over a ceasefire due to expire on Tuesday.
US seizure and Iranian response
The US military said it fired on an Iranian-flagged vessel as it sailed toward Iran’s Bandar Abbas port. “We have full custody of their ship, and are seeing what’s on board!” President Donald Trump wrote on social media.
Iran’s military said the ship had been travelling from China and warned that its armed forces would “soon respond and retaliate against this armed piracy,” according to state media.
Iran rejects talks and links stance to blockade
Iranian state media reported that Tehran had rejected new talks, citing the ongoing blockade, threatening rhetoric, and what it described as Washington’s shifting positions and excessive demands.
“One cannot restrict Iran’s oil exports while expecting free security for others,” Iran’s First Vice President Mohammadreza Aref wrote on social media. “The choice is clear: either a free oil market for all, or the risk of significant costs for everyone.”
Threats over infrastructure and regional warnings
Trump warned earlier that the US would destroy every bridge and power plant in Iran if Tehran rejected his terms.
Iran has said that any attack on its civilian infrastructure would be met with strikes on power stations and desalination plants in neighbouring Gulf Arab states.
Market reaction and Gulf shipping disruption
Oil prices jumped and stock markets wobbled as traders weighed the prospect of shipping through the Gulf remaining at a near standstill.
The Strait of Hormuz, which typically handles roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply, has been effectively closed for most of the eight weeks since the war began on 28 February.
Preparations for talks in Islamabad
Despite Tehran’s rejection, Washington pressed ahead with preparations for a second round of talks in Islamabad. Trump said his envoys would arrive in the Pakistani capital on Monday evening, though he gave contradictory signals about the composition of the delegation, telling ABC News and MS Now that Vice President JD Vance would not attend after earlier reports indicated he would lead the team alongside envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Pakistan, the chief mediator, appeared to be preparing regardless. Two US C-17 cargo aircraft landed at a Pakistani air base on Sunday carrying security equipment and vehicles. Municipal authorities in Islamabad halted public transport and heavy-goods traffic, barbed wire was deployed near the Serena Hotel where last week’s talks were held, and the hotel asked all guests to vacate.
Negotiation gaps and allied concerns
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who has led Tehran’s negotiating team, said earlier that the two sides had made progress but remained far apart on nuclear issues and the status of the strait.
European allies, repeatedly criticised by Trump for failing to contribute to the war effort, have expressed concern that Washington is pushing for a hasty agreement that would leave the most complex technical issues unresolved for months or years of follow-on negotiations.
Casualties and wider conflict
Thousands of people have been killed by US-Israeli strikes on Iran and in a parallel Israeli invasion of Lebanon since the conflict began.
Iran has responded with missiles and drone strikes against Israel and Arab countries hosting US bases.
What do you think the ceasefire expiry could mean for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz?
