President Trump says the US is “in very deep negotiations with Iran”
President Trump told reporters that the United States is engaged in “very deep negotiations with Iran” as J.D. Vance continues to meet with Iranian negotiators in Pakistan.
A day after U.S.-Iranian peace talks in Islamabad failed, President Donald Trump said the U.S. Navy would begin a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
President Trump posted on social media early Sunday, April 12, saying the United States would intercept all ships in international waters that paid tolls to Iran to transit the critical shipping lane.
“Those who pay illegal tolls cannot safely navigate the high seas,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “We will also begin destroying the mines the Iranians have laid in the straits. Iranians who fire on us or peaceful vessels will be blown to hell!”
The blockade marks a significant escalation in the Persian Gulf, and the president’s comments come just hours after peace talks between the United States and Iran ended without an agreement.
Vice President J.D. Vance said the United States was unable to reach an agreement to end the Iran war after marathon talks in Islamabad, Pakistan, where U.S. and Iranian officials met face-to-face for the first time in 47 years in peace talks between the two countries.
Trump said in a social media post on Saturday, April 11, before the talks began, that the U.S. was “cleaning up” the Strait of Hormuz, but he and other officials did not provide a specific timeline or details for the reopening.
The concept of tolls has become a controversial issue as the United States and Iran continue to tussle over the strait, which Iran has effectively blocked since the joint war between the United States and Israel began more than six weeks ago.
President Trump has previously said he opposes imposing Iranian-controlled tolls on ships allowed to pass through the choke point, and floated the idea that the United States could impose tolls instead.
Kathryn Palmer is USA TODAY’s political reporter. She can be reached at the following address: kapalmer@usatoday.com And to X@Kathryn Purml. Sign up for her daily politics newsletter here.
