Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed on Sunday that the talks with the US in Islamabad failed because of Washington’s maximalist approach and last-minute attempt to shift the goalposts.
He noted that these were the first high-level talks between the US and Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 with a potential to change history. However, due to America’s failure to learn a single thing about Iran in all those years, the opportunity was missed, he claimed.
Araghchi stated that the two parties were “inches away” from reaching an “Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding”, after 21 hours of talks before it was abruptly called off, reiterating that “good will begets good will and enmity begets enmity”.
The peace negotiations between Iran and the US began on Saturday, after both parties agreed to a two-week ceasefire in the war, which began on February 28, after the US and Israel started bombing Iran.
US Vice President JD Vance, who led the US delegation in the talks, accused Iranians of failing to agree to Washington’s demands of no nuclear weapons as the reason for the end of the talks, calling it “bad news for Iran”.
Iran has long maintained that it does not want nuclear weapons but can never give up its right to nuclear enrichment.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, in a post on X on Monday, also said that if the US government stops its totalitarian approach and starts to “respect the rights of the Iranian nation, ways to reach an agreement will certainly be found.”
Reports have emerged suggesting that efforts are underway (primarily by Pakistan) to facilitate a second round of talks between the US and Iran in Islamabad, before the window of the two-week ceasefire ends.
US naval blockade of Iran is illegal
Meanwhile Iran and several other countries objected to the US imposing a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz.
US President Donald Trump announced a naval blockade of Iran and the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, April 12. The US military has claimed that no ships will be allowed to leave Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf or in the Gulf of Oman starting Monday.
Guo Jiakun, official spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a regular press conference on Monday, said that the “root cause of the disrupted passage in the Strait” is the war on Iran. He emphasized that a diplomatic solution to this conflict must be achieved as soon as possible.
“Safeguarding the security, stability and unimpeded passage in the Strait of Hormuz serves the common interests of the international community,” said Guo.
Jiakun also mentioned that the prime minister of the UK and one of Washington’s closest allies, Keir Starmer, denied that his country will participate in the US blockade.
The foreign ministers of 10 ASEAN members, in a joint statement issued on Monday, asked the US and Iran to keep diplomatic channels open for a permanent settlement of their dispute and ensure safe passage of “ships and aircrafts” through the Strait of Hormuz.
“The restrictions imposed by criminal America on maritime navigation and transit in international waters are illegal and constitute an example of piracy,” said Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya military headquarters in a televised statement on Monday.
Iran also claimed that “security in the Persian Gulf and sea of Oman is either for everyone or for no one. If Iran’s ports are threatened, no port in the region will be safe.”
No US vessels passed through the strait
In a statement on Sunday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards’ Corp (IRGC) also warned that any attempt by a military vessel to cross the Strait of Hormuz would be considered a violation of the two-week ceasefire agreed with the US and invite a decisive response.
The IRGC clarified that civilian vessels, however, can pass through the strait under “specific regulations,” Press TV reported.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) claimed on Sunday that two of its naval ships transited through the strait in its attempts to create a “new passage” and “safe pathways.”
The IRGC denied these claims about its ships transiting through the waterway.
Meanwhile, speaker of Iranian parliament and head of the Iranian delegation for negotiations in Islamabad Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf dismissed the threats of a naval blockade of Iran, claiming it will ultimately backfire and force US consumers to pay much higher gas prices because of the measure than before.
Nearly a quarter of the global supply of oil and gas passes through the Strait of Hormuz. Since the war began, Iran has imposed a limited blockade on the shipments through the strait which had caused a rapid spike in crude oil prices which dipped following the ceasefire announcement.
After talks failed and Trump announced a complete blockade of Iran’s coastlines and other ships through the strait, oil prices have shot back up, crossing USD 103 per barrel on Monday and are expected to rise further in the coming days.
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