Iran rejects US talks ‘under shadow of threats,’ warns of military options

Iran will not engage in negotiations with the United States “under the shadow of threats,” Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Monday, sharply criticizing President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. Ghalibaf, a key figure in the ongoing talks, wrote on social media that Trump has attempted to use threats to turn the negotiations “into a table of surrender or to justify renewed warmongering.” He added that Iran has prepared new military options should the Pakistan-brokered two-week ceasefire lapse later this week.

Blockade and ceasefire violations

Trump announced Sunday that US representatives would fly to Islamabad for further negotiations, but Tehran has yet to officially confirm its participation and has demanded the lifting of the blockade. The US has maintained a naval blockade on Iranian ports since last week, which Tehran describes as a violation of the already fragile ceasefire. Trump also warned Sunday that the US would target Iran’s infrastructure if Tehran failed to accept US terms, adding to market unease as the ceasefire is set to expire Tuesday evening Washington time.

Strait of Hormuz tensions

Shipping concerns intensified after Iran, which had declared the Strait of Hormuz open on Friday, reversed course on Saturday and again restricted vessel movements through the strategic waterway, with state media stating that the US had not met its obligations. Pakistan hosted the first direct high-level US-Iran engagement in Islamabad on April 11-12—the first such contact since the two countries severed diplomatic ties in 1979—but those talks ended without a breakthrough.