Donald Trump said the US has begun blocking the Strait of Hormuz until a deal is reached with Iran

The US President Donald Trump wrote on the social network Truth Social that the US has blocked the Strait of Hormuz — no ship will be able to pass through it until the US and Iran reach an agreement on complete freedom of passage for all.

He also instructed the US Navy to intercept in international waters every ship that paid Iran a toll for passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

On the eve, April 11, American warships entered the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since the beginning of the war: the destroyers Frank E. Peterson and Michael Murphy. The American military reported that their task was to clear the water area of Iranian mines and form a new route for ships.

Regarding the US-Iranian talks in Pakistan, which took place on April 11-12, Trump wrote that the US and Iran agreed on many points, but the problem remains that Iran is not ready to give up its nuclear ambitions.

War in the Middle East and negotiations between Iran and the US

On the morning of February 28, the US and Israel launched an attack on Iran. Iranʼs Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and almost the entire military leadership of the country — about 40 key high-ranking officials — were killed.

Iran, in response to the US and Israeli attacks, began shelling Arab countries and Israel. The war also halted tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, through which almost a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports passed. This led to a sharp increase in oil and gas prices.

On the night of April 8, Trump wrote that he had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran. Later, Iran published a 10-point peace plan: under it, the parties would cease hostilities, the US would withdraw troops from the Middle East and would no longer attack Iranian bases, and ships would have limited access to the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks.

Iran would also be required to lift primary and secondary sanctions and compensate for losses. Iran would commit not to developing nuclear weapons, and the US would recognize Iranʼs right to enrich uranium.

But on the afternoon of April 8, the Prime Minister of Pakistan said that ceasefire violations had been recorded in several places in the conflict zone in the Middle East.

Reuters sources reported that Iran had struck the East-West oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia, which is currently the only channel for exporting crude oil from the country, and other facilities. Before that, Iran announced an American attack on the refinery on Laban Island and threatened to respond.

At the same time, Israel launched its largest attack on Lebanon since the start of the new war: in 10 minutes, the Israeli army attacked more than 100 sites of the pro-Iranian Hezbollah, killing more than 350 people. Israel claims that the ceasefire does not apply to Lebanon, while Pakistani mediators wrote that the cessation of hostilities also applies to Lebanon.

Negotiations between the United States and Iran took place in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, on April 11-12. They lasted almost 21 hours. The parties failed to reach an agreement on a final end to the war, with the Americans citing Iranʼs reluctance to give up its nuclear program as the main reason.

For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.