Iran refuses second round of talks with US

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Bahaei confirmed that Tehran does not plan to hold a new round of talks with the US.

He is quoted by Al Jazeera.

Bahai said the US had violated the ceasefire, and Iran "cannot forget the US attacks on it during previous negotiations".

Yesterday, April 19, the US President Donald Trump reported that his representatives would travel to Pakistan for talks.

Late in the evening, sources told Al Jazeera that it was unclear whether Vice President J.D. Vance would visit Islamabad today. The sources said the US could first send negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad, and if talks begin, Vance could join them.

Pakistan has imposed various security measures across Islamabad, including blocking roads and deploying thousands of police and paramilitary forces from across the country.

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

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

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, a narrow sea corridor between Iran and Oman that connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean. It was through it that almost a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports passed — tens of millions of barrels a day.

On April 8, the parties agreed to a two-week ceasefire. On April 13, the United States began a naval blockade of Iranian ports, demanding the complete unblocking of the Strait of Hormuz for all ships.

On April 17, Lebanon and Israel agreed to a ceasefire, after which Iran unblocked the Strait of Hormuz. However, on April 18, Iran announced that it was again blocking the Strait of Hormuz due to the US naval blockade. On the same day, Iran fired on several ships attempting to pass through the strait.

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