Possible talks in limbo as Hormuz blockade persists

The United States and Iran remained far apart on their preconditions for talks on Wednesday, even after US President Donald Trump unilaterally extended a two-week truce indefinitely, but the US naval blockade of Iran's ports, a key sticking point for Tehran, will continue.

Trump said in a statement that he had agreed to a request from Pakistan "to hold our attacks on Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal... and discussions are concluded, one way or the other." He had previously indicated he would not extend the truce and warned bombing would resume when it expired.

But even as he announced the unilateral extension, Trump also said he would continue the US' blockade of Iran's trade by sea, considered an act of war by Iran. A White House official also confirmed that Vice-President JD Vance would not travel to Pakistan as previously planned.

Iran's Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, said Tehran had not requested the extension. An adviser to Iran's lead negotiator, Parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said Trump's announcement was likely a political ploy.

At this critical juncture, Tehran had yet to formally respond to an invitation to hold talks with the US in Islamabad. "Iran knows how to neutralize restrictions, how to defend its interests and how to resist bullying," Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on social media, denouncing the US blockade as a ceasefire violation.

Before Trump's latest announcement, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that Iran's negotiators would be willing to attend another round of talks — but only if the US abandoned its policy of pressure and threats, and rejected any negotiations aimed at forcing Iran's surrender.

Experts said Iran speaks with one unified voice when it comes to negotiations with the US, and its noncommittal public stance is a deliberate strategy to pressure Washington.

"The current standoff is no longer a clash of capabilities but rather a struggle of political endurance and bargaining leverage," Daniel Byman, an expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, wrote in a commentary.

Meanwhile, Iranians held rallies across the country on Tuesday, and the IRGC moved missiles and launchers into public spaces for the first time since the ceasefire took effect — a clear show of defiance toward Israel and the US, which have focused much of their airstrike campaign on destroying Iran's missile arsenal.

All eyes are now on whether enough will be done to bring Iran back to the negotiating table, as Iran's Ambassador to the United Nations, Amir-Saeid Iravani, made clear that negotiators will not go to Islamabad until the US lifts the naval blockade.

On the core agenda, Maria Sultan, director general of the South Asian Strategic Stability Institute and adviser to Pakistan's Defense Ministry, pointed out a "unanimity of thought" within the Iranian leadership. "Their decision-making has become more consensus-based, more communicative and more inclusive," she told Al Jazeera.

On Wednesday, oil prices briefly topped $100 per barrel before just coming down below that. Brent crude was currently trading around $98 per barrel.

The war, which erupted in late February, has led to the virtual closure of the Strait of Hormuz, sending oil prices soaring and stoking fears that the global economy could slip into a recession. In peacetime, about 20 percent of the world's oil and natural gas transited through this waterway.

On Wednesday morning, Iran's IRGC fired on a container ship in the strait. Iran's Nour News reported that the guards only opened fire after the vessel ignored repeated warnings from the Iranian armed forces. Fars News Agency described the attack as Iran "lawfully enforcing its control" over the strait.

Shortly after that, another cargo ship leaving Iran was fired upon and was halted nearly 15 kilometers west of Iran, with no reported damage or casualties, according to the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center. It was unclear who had targeted this ship.