Iran Threatens to Block Red Sea Shipping Routes
Iran has threatened on Wednesday to block maritime traffic in the Red Sea if the United States continues to impose a blockade on its ports, reaffirming its willingness to continue negotiating and ignore threats from Donald Trump.
A Pakistani mediator delegation is in Iran to pursue further talks with Washington, as the world hopes for the extension of the ceasefire, in place since April 8, to avoid a resumption of a war that has shaken the global economy.
After the failure of an initial round of discussions in Islamabad last Sunday, influential Pakistani Army Chief Asim Munir was welcomed on Wednesday by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, as shown in photos published on the latter’s Telegram account.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esma’il Baghaei, stated that “several messages have been exchanged through Pakistan” over the past three days. However, he also reiterated one of Iran’s major demands that is currently blocking talks with Washington.
He emphasized that the right to civil nuclear power cannot be “withdrawn under pressure or through war,” only opening the door to discussions on “the level and type of uranium enrichment,” a process he described as “indisputable.”
Meanwhile, Donald Trump reiterated Tuesday evening — as he has done several times before — that the war is “almost over.” However, a senior American official denied on Wednesday that Iran had agreed to extend the ceasefire.
– “Double Blockade” –
On the ground, Iran is still controlling the Strait of Hormuz, and Washington has imposed a blockade on shipments to and from Iranian ports since Monday.
Brad Cooper, the chief of US forces in the region, stated that American forces have completely halted Iran’s maritime trade, emphasizing that around “90% of the Iranian economy” depends on it.
A potential insecurity caused by the US in commercial vessels and oil tankers for Iran will be a prelude to a ceasefire violation, countered General Ali Abdollahi, head of the Iranian armed forces’ command.
Iran announced that there will be “no export or import in the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman, or the Red Sea,” without specifying the form this blockade would take, which could potentially be carried out by Houthi rebels in Yemen, allies of Iran.
Just a few weeks before a crucial trip to Beijing, Donald Trump claimed to have convinced Chinese authorities of the validity of his strategy.
“China is very happy that I am permanently opening the Strait of Hormuz,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform, stating that his Chinese counterparts had “agreed not to send weapons to Iran.”
“President Xi will give me a big hug when I arrive low-down in a few weeks. We are working smartly together…! Isn’t this better than fighting???” he added.
As a lingering concern persists, finance ministers from eleven countries, including the UK, Japan, and Australia, have called for a “rapid and lasting negotiated resolution to the conflict,” citing significant risks to “global energy security, supply chains, as well as economic and financial stability.”
According to strategic studies professor Phillips O’Brien from the University of St Andrews, “either this is an elaborate bluff from both sides, and we are on the verge of an agreement, in which case the blockade was just a formality.”
Alternatively, “we are about to witness a major economic event as the double blockade, claimed to be in effect by both the US and Iran, continues.”
– Israeli-Lebanese Talks –
On the Lebanese front of the conflict, which Israel does not consider to be part of the ceasefire, hostilities with the pro-Iranian Hezbollah continue despite discussions held Tuesday between the ambassadors of both countries in the US.
The Israeli army announced hitting over 200 Hezbollah targets in the past 24 hours and being targeted by around thirty rockets on Wednesday morning.
Israel and Lebanon have agreed to start direct negotiations following these ambassadorial discussions, the first of their kind since 1993. The US State Department clarified that the date and location “remain to be mutually agreed upon.”
Lebanese Ambassador Nada Hamadeh Moawad described the “preparatory meeting” as “constructive.” The Israeli government hailed it as a “historic opportunity to end decades of Hezbollah’s control over Lebanon.”
Hezbollah, which opposes any direct negotiation, deemed these talks as a “surrender” and claimed responsibility for rocket fire towards Israel.
Approximately one million people have been displaced in Lebanon, a fifth of the population, according to the UN, which has urged the international community to provide urgent assistance to the country.
