Iran war: Tehran slams US port blockade

News agencies are reporting that Pakistan is making efforts toward bringing Iran and the US to the negotiation table again after a first set of talks in Islamabad on the weeked failed to bring a peace agreement.

A Pakistani official cited by the AFP news agency, who spoke under condition of anonymity, said, "Efforts are underway to bring both parties back to the table. Of course we want them back in Islamabad, but the venue is not final yet."

"The meeting could take place soon though dates have yet to be confirmed," the official said, adding: "We are also working to get the ceasefire extended beyond the current deadline to allow for additional time."

Although the first round of talks appeared to have been without a concrete outcome, US Vice President JD Vance, who led Washington's delegation, said they "did make some progress."

Lebanese and Israeli delegations are scheduled to meet in Washington Tuesday for talks on ending the war in Lebanon.

Lebanon entered the Iran war on March 2 after the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah attacked Israel, which responded with strikes that have killed more than 2,000 people and displaced a million more.

Israeli ground forces have also invaded south Lebanon.

The meeting in the US will be mediated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and include the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors to Washington and the US ambassador to Beirut.

However, the chances of any agreement appear slight, with Hezbollah on Monday calling the planned talks "futile" and suggesting they be scrapped.

Israel has said it wants to see Hezbollah disarmed, a position backed by the US.

Hezbollah,  whose armed wing operates outside the Lebanese state, has consistently resisted calls for its disarmament, saying such demands open the path for continued Israeli aggression against Lebanon.

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has said Washington's excessive demands and a "lack of political will" on the part of US officials were to blame for the failure of recent peace talks in Islamabad. 

Iran's state-run English language broadcaster PressTV reported that Pezeshkian told French President Emmanuel Macron in a phone call that "the excessiveness and lack of political will of senior US officials have prevented the agreement from being finalized."

He said that Iran preferred the diplomatic path over war, provided that its national dignity and sovereignty were safeguarded.

US Vice President JD Vance, who led Washington's delegation at failed weekend peace talks with Iran in Pakistan at the weekend, says the US has told Iran what it considers necessary for peace and that Iran now has to make the appropriate moves.

 "I really think the ball is in the Iranian court, because we put a lot on the table. We actually made very clear what our red lines were," Vance said in an interview with US conservative broadcaster Fox News late on Monday.

He said the US was adamant about having to take control of Iran's enriched uranium and putting in place a verification mechanism to ensure it does not develop a nuclear weapon in the future.

"It's one thing for the Iranians to say that they're not going to have a nuclear weapon. It's another thing for us to put in place the mechanism to ensure that's not going to happen," Vance said.

Iran has previously insisted on its right to enrich uranium, saying its nuclear program is for civilian purposes only.

US President Donald Trump started the war with Iran on February 28 with the stated aim of stopping Tehran from developing nuclear weapons, something the Iranian government has said it is not trying to do. 

Media outlets have reported that Washington asked Tehran to agree not to enrich uranium for 20 years, citing officials close to the negotiations held in Islamabad on Saturday.
       
Iran in turn proposed to suspend its nuclear activity for five years, according to The New York Times.

Trump has claimed Iranian representatives have called the US since the Pakistan talks and wanted a deal "very badly, very badly.
 

Iran's ambassador to the United Nations has called a US blockade around its ports that came into force on Monday a "grave violation" of its sovereignty that "poses a grave threat to international peace." 

In his letter to UN chief Antonion Guterres, seen by the AFP news agency, Amir Saeid Iravani said the blockade also constituted "a serious violation of the fundamental principles of the international law of the sea."

US President Donald Trump has said the blockade on ships entering or leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas in the Gulf aims to force Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil and gas flows.

He has warned that any Iranian warships approaching the blockade would be destroyed.

The US action comes despite a two-week ceasefire agreed by Washington and Tehran that is due to end on April 22. 

The blockade, which comes after failed peace talks in Pakistan over the weekend, poses a threat to that ceasefire, with Iran responding with threats against all ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
       

You join our reporting on the Iran war as a naval blockade of Iranian ports by the US gets underway.

The US action has gravely angered Tehran, which has issued threats agains ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

However, oil prices have sunk and stocks risen after US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran "very badly" wanted a deal despite the collapse of peace talks in Pakistan over the weekend.

Trump meanwhile is facing a storm of criticism at home after he strongly criticized the pope over anti-war comments.

You can read more about the major developments in the US-Israeli war on Iran here.