War in the Middle East: Donald Trump announces that the United States will implement a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz

After the failure of negotiations between Iran and the United States, Donald Trump ordered an American naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday. This was in response to Iran’s “intransigent” refusal to abandon its nuclear ambitions during peace talks held from Saturday morning to Sunday morning in Islamabad, Pakistan.

The discussions lasted over 20 hours, but both sides failed to reach an agreement to end the war in the Middle East. The war began on February 28 with an Israeli-American offensive against Iran, casting doubts on the current two-week ceasefire.

Vice President JD Vance, who was present at the talks, returned to the United States on Sunday morning after claiming to have made a “final and best possible offer” to Iran. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Iranian parliamentary president leading the Iranian delegation, criticized the United States as “incapable” of winning Iran’s trust during the negotiations.

On Sunday, President Trump spoke for the first time on Truth Social, acknowledging the progress of the talks in Pakistan but highlighting Iran’s refusal to compromise on nuclear issues.

The United States will begin a blockade process of all ships attempting to enter or exit the Strait of Hormuz, through which a significant amount of global oil, gas, and fertilizers pass, as stated by the White House.

President Trump warned that any Iranian who fires on them or peaceful ships will be “pulverized,” hinting at the involvement of other countries without naming them directly. Later on Fox News, he mentioned that Britain and “a few other countries” would send mine-clearing ships to the strait.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards, the ideological military branch of the Islamic Republic, responded by claiming full control over the strait’s traffic and threatening their enemies with a “deadly whirlwind.”