US President Donald Trump on Tuesday extended the two-week U.S. ceasefire with Iran due to Tehran’s government being “seriously fractured.”
Trump said the ceasefire, which he earlier had said would end on Wednesday, would continue “until such time as” Iran’s leaders and representatives submit a “unified proposal” to end the war with the U.S. and Israel.
Trump’s announcement came after reports that an expected trip by Vice President JD Vance to Pakistan for a second round of peace talks with Iranian officials had been put on hold, and after the Iranian state news outlet Tasnim reported that negotiators from Tehran had informed their U.S. counterparts through an intermediary in Pakistan that they would not appear for further talks.
“Iran ultimately announced today that under these circumstances, attending the negotiations is a waste of time because the US prevents reaching any suitable agreement,” Tasnim reported.
An advisor to the speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, called Trump’s ceasefire extension “a ploy to buy time” for a surprise strike, Reuters reported.
Qalibaf’s advisor, in a post on X, also said the continued blockade of Iranian ports by the U.S. Navy was “no different from bombardment and must be met with a military response,” Reuters reported.
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump, during an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” said, “I don’t want to do that,” after being asked if he would extend the ceasefire to allow for peace talks to reach a deal.
“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” Trump said in a statement.
“I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other,” the president said.
Iranian officials have accused the U.S. of breaching its commitments under a 10-point framework that Iran offered at the start of a fragile ceasefire.
A key point of conflict remains the Strait of Hormuz, a major route for global oil transit, which Iran effectively closed at the start of the war.
Trump said he had agreed to the ceasefire on condition that the strait be fully reopened.
However, traffic through the passage remained relatively light, and following the collapse of initial peace negotiations, Trump ordered a U.S. Navy blockade of Iranian ports near the strait.