President Donald Trump is “content” with leaving the naval blockade of ships heading to or coming from Iranian ports “until the Iranians show they are serious about making a deal,” a White House official told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday.
The president announced the U.S. and Iran had agreed to a two-week ceasefire last week pending Iran’s reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway off their coast that they have shut down since the start of the conflict. The first round of U.S. and Iranian negotiations took place last Saturday in Islamabad, Pakistan, though it ended without a long-term deal.
Recommended Stories
Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz for ships that don’t pay, or that come from or are going to their ports, has had wide-reaching ramifications on the global economy. It was their primary way of retaliating against the U.S., considering its military is not up to par with America’s armed forces.
IRAN WAR DISRUPTS GLOBAL ALUMINUM SUPPLY, PROLONGING SHORTAGES FOR MONTHS
In light of Iran’s closure and the subsequent economic pain, Trump announced last Sunday that the U.S. would begin its own blockade of vessels going to or coming from Iranian ports so they feel the same economic burden they have imposed on the rest of the world.
Adm. Brad Cooper, the commander of U.S. Central Command, said on Tuesday night that “an estimated 90% of Iran’s economy is fueled by international trade by sea. In less than 36 hours since the blockade was implemented, U.S. forces have completely halted economic trade going into and out of Iran by sea.”
During the first 48 hours of the blockade, no ships made it past U.S. vessels, and nine merchant vessels complied with orders from U.S. forces to turn around and reenter an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman, CENTCOM said in a statement.
A U.S. Central Command spokesperson told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday, “U.S. forces continue to implement a pause on offensive strikes into Iran.”
CENTCOM released audio of a U.S. navy sailor giving orders to a vessel.
“The U.S. has announced a formal blockade of Iranian ports and coastal areas. This is a legal action. All vessels are advised to immediately return to port if leaving and discontinue transit to Iran if that is your next port of call,” the unidentified sailor said. “Do not attempt to breach the blockade. Vessels will be boarded for interdiction and seizure transiting to or from an Iranian port. Turn around and prepare to be boarded. If you do not comply with this blockade, we will use force.”
Vice President JD Vance, special presidential envoy Steve Witkoff, and Trump’s son-in-law and former foreign policy adviser Jared Kushner led the U.S. delegation in the meeting in Islamabad. Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi led the Iranian side.
There are “discussions about a second round of talks, but nothing has been scheduled,” the White House official added.
Vance said in an interview on Fox News there are two subjects in which the U.S. has “no flexibility,” in their negotiating stance, and those are on the securing and removing Iran’s enriched uranium, which is believed to be buried underground in the destroyed facilities U.S. forces targeted in the June 2025 operation, and the second is on verification mechanisms to ensure Iran does not seek a nuclear weapon.
The ceasefire is set to expire next Tuesday, though it’s unclear if the administration is interested in extending it, if a deal hasn’t been reached by then. The 2-week agreement was announced shortly before a Trump-imposed deadline, in which Trump threatened to authorize the military to bomb various parts of Iranian infrastructure like power plants and bridges.
UNDERSTANDING WHY TRUMP ORDERED THE BLOCKADE IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ
It’s unknown if Trump would authorize those types of strikes if the ceasefire ends without an extension or agreement.
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again,” Trump said the morning the deal was announced.
