Just a day after Iran announced that it would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the regime has blocked the route again. The reason given by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf is the US-imposed naval blockade. It targets all ships heading to or from Iran.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghai criticized the US blockade as a "violation of the ceasefire", which will be followed by "a corresponding response from Iran". He stressed that the opening and closing of the strait is not done on social media - the decisive role in this regard was played by Iran.
On Friday, Iran announced that it was temporarily lifting the blockade of the strait. Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said that during the ceasefire, commercial ships will be able to pass through the route. He cited the ceasefire in Lebanon, which came into effect on Friday night, as the basis, ARD recalls.
Trump: Further negotiations are expected over the weekend
US President Donald Trump continues to insist on the blockade imposed by the US - at least until an agreement is reached with Iran through negotiations. "The naval blockade remains until our deal with Iran is fully concluded."
Trump expressed optimism that such an agreement can be reached very quickly, the German public media writes. "I think we will reach an agreement in the next one or two days," the Axios portal quotes him as saying. "Probably" There would be further talks between US and Iranian representatives over the weekend.
However, if an agreement to end the war is not reached by Wednesday, Trump threatened to end the ceasefire. He stressed that the US would continue to block the strait. "The blockade will remain and unfortunately we will have to start dropping bombs again."
Efforts with the mediation of Pakistan
The Iranian Foreign Ministry commented: "As soon as we feel that our interests are taken into account and guaranteed, the agreement will not be late". For Iran, the lifting of sanctions is of utmost importance, as is the compensation for the damage caused by the war.
The ARD notes that efforts are currently being made, with the mediation of Pakistan, to extend the ceasefire and to reach an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program.
The point of contention: enriched uranium
However, the latest data on the further approach to enriched uranium are conflicting, writes the German public media. The US president wrote in Truth Social that the US would "get all the nuclear dust provided by the magnificent American bombers".
CBS, in turn, quoted Trump as saying in a telephone interview that the US wanted to cooperate with Iran in withdrawing its uranium stockpile. "Our people will work together with the Iranians to collect it. Then we will take it to the United States." Trump envisions cooperation before reaching an agreement between the two countries.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Baghai immediately dismissed the prospect. "Transferring uranium to the United States was never an option and was not discussed."