Your Daily US Foreign Policy Briefing

US-Iran Peace Talks Collapse, Trump Orders Strait of Hormuz Blockade

• Peace talks between the United States and Iran concluded without an agreement in Islamabad on Sunday, April 12, following 21 hours of face-to-face negotiations. Vice President JD Vance, leading the U.S. delegation, stated that Iran refused to commit to abandoning its nuclear weapons program, a core "red line" for the U.S.. This failure leaves the fragile two-week ceasefire in doubt as the conflict enters its seventh week.

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• Immediately following the breakdown of talks, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. Navy would "immediately" begin a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to prevent ships from entering or leaving. This directive comes after Iran demanded the right to collect tolls from vessels and had effectively closed the critical waterway since the war began. In a counterintuitive move, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Navy declared it has "full control" of the Strait and warned that military vessels approaching would be met with a "firm and forceful response".

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• The U.S. had previously signaled its intent to reopen the Strait, with two U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers transiting the waterway on April 11, marking the first such passage since the war began. Iran's proposal during the talks included demands for the release of frozen assets, the lifting of sanctions, continued Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz, and an end to Israeli attacks on Lebanon.

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