US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced that he will be extending the ceasefire with Iran upon request from Pakistan, the lead mediator in ongoing negotiations.
Trump said that Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir have urged him to hold off attacks on Iran until Tehran’s leaders can come up with a “unified proposal”. Follow live updates on Iran US war here.
While the US President has announced the extension of ceasefire, he also said that the naval blockade of Iranian ports near the Strait of Hormuz will continue. “I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
The Republican’s big announcement may quell fears of an escalation in the war. Even as Trump said he would extend the truce, he continued to take potshots at Iran, saying the government there had been “seriously fractured”.
The announcement coincided with reports that Vice President JD Vance’s trip to Pakistan for talks has been put on hold. While Trump had long confirmed that the US delegation would attend the second round of negotiations, there was no official word on the same from Iran.
Trump’s ‘bombing’ threat before truce extension
Hours before announcing the extension of ceasefire, Donald Trump had threatened to resume “bombing” if the ceasefire ended without any resolution. “I expect to be bombing because I think that’s a better attitude to go in with,” Trump said in an interview to to CNBC’s “Squawk Box”.
He had also clarified that he won’t be extending the ceasefire, and contradicted himself hours later.
Tehran official suspects surprise attack ploy
According to a Reuters report, an advisor to Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has claimed that Trump’s announcement on ceasefire extension is a “ploy” for a surprise attack. The advisor also said that the “losing side” cannot dictate terms, rejecting the President’s announcement.
Uncertainty looms on Pak talks
Despite Trump’s announcement, uncertainty and confusion over the state of the second round of talks in Islamabad remains. There is no clarity yet on when the talks would take place and Iran is yet to officially confirm its participation.
Iran’s state media earlier reported that Iran has “rejected” participation due to the US’s “excessive” demands and refusal to lift the naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz.
A new sticking point in the negotiations is the seizure of Touska, an Iranian-flagged vessel intercepted by the US Marines in the Gulf of Oman. While Trump alleges that the container ship’s crew refused to adhere to warnings following which the military boarded it, Iran calls the seizure “armed piracy”.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called the “striking” of the vessel a breach of the ceasefire by the US.
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