Vance says “no deal was reached” in peace talks between US and Iran
Vice President Vance said the United States was unable to reach an agreement to end the Iran war after negotiations in Islamabad, Pakistan.
The United States has announced it will begin a blockade of all maritime traffic at Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz, ratcheting up tensions in the region after Iran and the United States failed to reach a peace deal over the weekend.
The central stalemate in the countries’ marathon negotiations in Islamabad on Saturday, April 11, was the US demand to reopen the Strait, the narrow waterway that has become Iran’s most effective tool in the joint war launched by the US and Israel more than six weeks ago.
This 160-mile waterway connects the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, and the Arabian Sea, and is bounded on one side by the Iranian coastline. Before the war, approximately 20% of the world’s oil and natural gas supplies passed through this narrow strait. However, shipping has virtually come to a standstill since Iran effectively closed the shipping route in response to the joint U.S.-Israel offensive that began on February 28. The closure has prevented hundreds of Gulf tankers from entering and exiting the strait. It disrupted world markets and caused global energy prices to soar.
U.S. officials told USA TODAY on April 12 that negotiations broke down over multiple issues, including how to deal with Iran’s nuclear program and facilities, support for Hamas and Hezbollah, and U.S. demands that Iran keep the strait open and not impose tolls.
Hours after the talks broke down, President Donald Trump announced on social media early on April 12 that the U.S. Navy would close the Strait of Hormuz.
Here’s what you need to know:
Where is the U.S. Navy conducting a blockade?
The nature of the blockade has changed significantly since the president first announced it on April 12, from a complete blockade of the strait to a more targeted operation centered on Iranian ports.
“Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the world’s greatest navy, will begin the process of blockading any vessels attempting to enter or exit the Strait of Hormuz,” President Trump said in his first announcement on Truth Social.
About an hour after posting on social media, President Trump called the operation a “total lockdown” in an interview with Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” Asked what he was trying to accomplish, Trump said he was aiming to reopen the straits to all shipping, calling it “all in and all out.”
U.S. Central Command later announced that the blockade, scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. ET, would be more targeted.
U.S. Central Command said the blockade “will be enforced equitably against vessels of all countries entering or exiting Iranian ports and coastal areas,” including “all Iranian ports in the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman.”
In a memo to sailors seen by Reuters, U.S. Central Command said the blockade applies to all vessel traffic, regardless of flag, along the Iranian coastline in the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea east of the Strait of Hormuz.
According to Reuters, the memo states that ships departing from the blockaded areas will be subject to “interception, diversion and seizure,” but ships passing through the strait to and from destinations other than Iran will not be affected. It has also been said that humanitarian transport, including food, medicine and other essential goods, will be allowed within the lockdown but will be subject to inspection.
That area is 21,000 square miles along Iran’s coastline, or about 87 percent the size of West Virginia, and is based on 12 nautical miles of territorial sea, according to USA TODAY calculations.
Will other countries join the lockdown?
The president also said in a 30-minute interview on Fox News over the weekend that “many countries” would help with the lockdown, but did not say which countries would help and how. He suggested Britain could help remove mines Iran had laid in the Strait, but the country’s prime minister later said the government would not help enforce a blockade.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a BBC interview on April 13 that his country “does not support” the lockdown threatened by President Trump and that the UK is “not at war.”
“It is important that we fully open the Straits,” he added, announcing that he would hold a joint summit with France this week to advance plans to protect international shipping once the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran ends.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on April 13 that he supports President Trump’s plan to close the strait, saying, “We, of course, support this aggressive stance and are constantly coordinating with the United States.”
Why would the US impose a blockade?
Experts say the blockade is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Iran to open the strait and reach a deal to end the conflict.
Robin Brooks, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, argued that the blockade would put financial pressure on a regime dependent on oil exports and avoid the possibility of further loss of life if the United States and Israel tried to seize Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal.
“Due to the blockade, Iran’s imports will collapse to zero because the cash from oil exports will not pay for anything. Iran’s currency will go into a downward spiral and the economy will fall into hyperinflation,” he told X.
At the same time, he said risks to the strategy include rising oil prices and the potential impact of U.S. financial markets.
Karen Young, a senior fellow at Columbia University’s World Energy Policy Center, told USA TODAY that while a blockade would cause financial hardship for Iran, it would not necessarily mean changing Iran’s negotiating position, as the strategy would push up oil prices. It is also possible that it will take longer for the strait to fully open.
“While Iran has long demonstrated the ability to weather economic pressure, we see little reason to reduce the impact on its population,” Young said.
James Stavridis, a retired U.S. Navy admiral and former NATO supreme allied commander, told CNN that the blockade would require one or two aircraft carriers, a dozen surface ships stationed off the coast of the port, and dozens of small boats, making it a “resource-intensive” strategy.
Iran could still respond by adding more mines to the strait or attacking oil infrastructure in Gulf states, but Stavridis noted on social media that “the Iranians are the only ones benefiting from the Gulf transit in recent days.”
“If there is a blockade…their economies will be suffocated…and the situation for the United States and its allies is no worse than after Iran began holding the Strait hostage,” he wrote.
Mark Nevitt, a law professor at Emory University and a former Navy lawyer, issued a warning on April 13’s analysis, stressing that even if a deal is reached, reopening the vital strait, which accounts for 11% of global maritime trade, won’t happen immediately. Part of the reason is because Iran has been mining in the area.
“New reports suggest that Iran is mining mines haphazardly in the strait, is not recording mine locations, and lacks the ability to carry out effective clearance operations,” he said. “Until these mines are found and removed, the strait will be effectively closed.”
How did Iran react?
Iran has issued its own threats in response to the impending blockade, warning it will violate the delicate two-week ceasefire that began on April 7 and suggesting it may begin targeting U.S. allies in the Gulf again.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards announced in a statement to Iranian state media on April 12 that any warship attempting to approach the strait will be considered a violation of the two-week ceasefire and will be dealt with harshly and firmly.
Iranian military spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari warned on April 13 that if Iranian ports are threatened, ports in the Gulf and the Gulf of Oman will no longer be safe. He added that blockading ships in international waters constitutes “act of piracy,” according to Iranian state media.
Contributor: George Petras, USA TODAY.
This story has been updated to clarify James Stavridis’ previous title. He is a former U.S. Navy admiral and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander..
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.
