Trump Vows To ‘Knock Out’ Iranian Infrastructure In Another Threat Amid Doubts Over Peace Talks

DUBAI, April 20 (Reuters) – Iran is considering joining peace talks Islamabad’s move to end the US blockade of Iranian ports is a major hurdle for Iran to rejoin peace efforts, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday.

However, the official emphasized that no decision has been made.

A senior Iranian official said Tehran was “positively considering” its involvement as the two-week ceasefire ended, but no final decision had been made. The comments reflected a clear change in tone from previous statements in which involvement was denied and promises of retaliation for US aggression.

The Iranian official said mediator Pakistan has made positive efforts to end the US blockade and ensure Iran’s participation.

The ceasefire was in danger after the US announced that it had seized an Iranian cargo ship trying to bypass the blockade and Tehran promised retaliation.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that it showed Washington was “not serious” about pursuing Iran. diplomatic processHe said Tehran would not change its demands.

The United States had hoped to begin negotiations in Pakistan shortly before the ceasefire expires while extensive security preparations were underway in Islamabad, but Baghaei said the United States “insisted on some illogical and unrealistic positions.”

A senior Iranian source told Reuters that Tehran’s “defense capabilities”, including its missile programme, were not negotiable.

US-IRAN ceasefire will end on TUESDAY NIGHT

A Pakistani security source said Pakistan’s chief negotiator, Field Marshal Asim Munir, told the US President: donald Embers The blockade was an obstacle to talks and this Embers He promised to consider the advice.

Embers On April 7, it announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran and did not specify exactly when the ceasefire would end.

A Pakistani source involved in the talks said the talks will end at 8pm EST on Tuesday, which would be midnight GMT in Iran or 3:30am on Wednesday.

When asked about the possibility of a weekend extension, Embers He replied: “I don’t know. Maybe I won’t extend it. Maybe I won’t extend it. But the blockade will continue.”

While the United States maintained its blockade of Iranian ports, Iran lifted and then reimposed its own blockade. Strait of HormuzIt typically supplies about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied gas supply.

Oil prices eased It rose around 3-4% on the day from previous highs as traders continued to fear the ceasefire would be broken. Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz came to a virtual standstill, with only three crossings in 12 hours. shipping data.

US NAVAL BOARD IRANIAN SHIP

The US military said it opened fire on an Iranian-flagged cargo ship heading to Iran’s Bandar Abbas port on Sunday after a six-hour delay, disabling its engines. US Central Command released a video showing sailors lowering ropes from helicopters onto the ship.

The Iranian military said the ship came from China and accused the United States of “armed piracy,” according to state media. They said they were prepared to confront US forces for “blatant aggression” but were constrained by the presence of crew members’ families on board.

China is the main buyer of Iranian crude oil expressed concern Chinese President Xi Jinping called for ships to continue passing normally through the strait and for the conflict to be resolved through political and diplomatic channels, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Embers He warned on Sunday that the United States would destroy every bridge and power plant in Iran if it rejects his terms, continuing a recent pattern of such threats.

Iran has said it would hit power plants and desalination plants in its Gulf Arab neighbors if the United States attacked its civilian infrastructure.

PREPARATIONS ARE BEING MADE FOR CONVERSATIONS THAT WILL NOT HAPPEN

Embers He told the New York Post that Vice President JD Vance will arrive in Islamabad in a few hours, leading the US delegation. Vance led the US delegation to the first round of talks a week ago. Embersambassador Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Despite Iran’s previous statements that it would not participate, Pakistan prepared for the talks. About 20,000 security personnel have been deployed in the capital Islamabad, a government official and a security official said.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqir Galibaf, who sided with Iran in the negotiations, said on Saturday that the two sides have made progress, but they are still far from each other on nuclear issues and Iran-related issues. Throat.

European allieshas been criticized many times by Embers We worry that Washington’s negotiating team will be quick to crack down on him for not helping the war effort. superficial agreement this will require months or years of technically complex follow-up discussions.

Thousands of people have been killed in the US-Israeli attacks on Iran and the parallel Israeli invasion of Lebanon since the war began on February 28; The ceasefire is still in effect here.

Iran responded to attacks against Israel and nearby Arab countries hosting US bases with missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.

(Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Andy Sullivan, John Geddie, Alexandra Hudson; Editing by Lincoln Feast, Kevin Liffey)