Trump extended the ceasefire with Iran because the Pakistanis “asked” him to

The US President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that he has extended the ceasefire with Iran until the Iranians submit their proposals and end the discussions.

According to the US president, the Iranian government is seriously divided, and therefore Iranian leaders cannot agree on a single position. He was asked to continue the ceasefire by Pakistani mediators: Field Marshal, Chief of General Staff of the Pakistani Armed Forces Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will remain in place. It targets ships whose routes include Iranian ports or coastal areas.

The truce was supposed to end tonight, as it has been two weeks since the ceasefire on the night of April 8.

Shortly before Trumpʼs statement, the Iranian media outlet Tasnim, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported that Iran would not send representatives to the talks in Islamabad on Wednesday. American media outlets, including The New York Times, also reported, citing a source, that US Vice President J.D. Vance had postponed his trip to the talks.

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

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.

On April 19, Donald Trump announced that his representatives would go to Pakistan for talks. But Iran refused to send its delegation. The Foreign Ministry noted that the US had violated the ceasefire, and Iran "cannot forget the US attacks on it during previous talks".

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