Lead

The United States and Iran on Monday each warned they were ready for war as the clock ticked on a ceasefire, with uncertainty over talks that US President Donald Trump had announced would resume in Pakistan. The White House said Vice-President JD Vance was ready to fly back to the Pakistani capital Islamabad, which was visibly preparing for a second round of talks on ending the war that has engulfed the Middle East and shaken global markets, as reported by Al Jazeera.

But Tehran’s cleric-run government declined to confirm that it would take part and accused the United States of violating the truce through its blockade of Iranian ports and seizure of a ship. “By imposing a blockade and violating the ceasefire, Trump wants to turn this negotiating table into a surrender table or justify renewed hostilities, as he sees fit,” said Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who headed the delegations to talks two weeks ago in Pakistan. “We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats, and in the last two weeks we have been preparing to show new cards on the battlefield,” he wrote on social media, according to Al Jazeera.

Coverage Comparison

Al Jazeera reported from Tehran that there is no official confirmation on whether Iran will take part in talks in Islamabad. Its correspondent Tohid Asadi noted that Iran has tried to keep the door ajar to diplomacy, so there is still a possibility. Asadi described Ghalibaf’s message as a “mixed message,” saying Iran is ready for negotiations but not under terms imposed by the US.

The Jerusalem Post reported that US Vice President JD Vance told reporters before departing from Pakistan on Sunday that it was “bad news” that no agreement had been reached, but it was worse for Iran. The Post also cited former US ambassador to Oman Marc Seivers, who suggested that neither the talks nor the ceasefire was a sign that the US was pulling back from the war, but rather a sign that Washington was honoring the request of regional partners in trying the diplomatic approach, even if there would be no fruitful results.

A separate Jerusalem Post analysis by Kamyar Behrang examined an essay by Seyed Hossein Mousavian on the US-Iran deadlock, arguing that the essay attempts to recast perception as reality. The analysis contended that US President Donald Trump has demonstrated a consistent reluctance to engage in large-scale military confrontation, and that this restraint is not a concession extracted by Tehran’s deterrent capabilities but a calculated decision grounded in the recognition that war in the Persian Gulf carries disproportionate economic, geopolitical, and domestic costs.

Another Jerusalem Post analysis by Erfan Fard argued that Iran’s decision to skip the latest round of peace talks in Pakistan should not be interpreted as a diplomatic breakdown, but as a calculated move within a familiar strategic pattern: the use of absence as a tool of leverage. The analysis suggested that refusal has rarely meant disengagement for Iran, and that by refusing to attend, Tehran increases the political cost of negotiations for Washington while reframing the terms under which talks could eventually resume.

South China Morning Post reported on the war warnings and noted Iran’s accusation that the US violated the truce through its blockade and ship seizure, which provoked another surge in global oil prices.

Key Claims

  • The US and Iran have a ceasefire in place, but its future is uncertain. This is reported by multiple sources, including Al Jazeera and the Jerusalem Post.
  • US Vice President JD Vance said it was “bad news” that no agreement had been reached in the talks with Iran, but it was worse for Iran. This was reported by the Jerusalem Post.
  • Iran’s nuclear enrichment is a key issue in the US-Iran conflict. Vance was quoted by the Jerusalem Post as saying, “We need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon, and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon. That is the core goal of the president of the United States, and that’s what we’ve tried to achieve through these negotiations.”
  • US President Donald Trump delivered an ultimatum to Iran on uranium enrichment, according to former US ambassador Marc Seivers, as reported by the Jerusalem Post.
  • Iran’s decision to skip the latest round of peace talks in Pakistan is a calculated move to use absence as a tool of leverage, according to an analysis in the Jerusalem Post.
  • The US seized an Iranian-flagged vessel near the Strait of Hormuz, angering Iranian authorities. This was reported by Al Jazeera and South China Morning Post.
  • Iran is prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield if the ceasefire expires without a deal, as stated by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and reported by Al Jazeera and South China Morning Post.
  • US President Donald Trump threatened Iran with “problems like they’ve never seen before” if the ceasefire expires without a deal, as reported by Al Jazeera.

Perspectives

United States

US officials, including Vice President JD Vance, have emphasized that the US has “made very clear what our red lines are,” and that the core goal is to ensure Iran does not seek a nuclear weapon or the tools to quickly achieve one. The administration has delivered an ultimatum on uranium enrichment and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and has expressed confidence that Iran will negotiate.

Iran

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has accused the US of violating the ceasefire through a blockade and ship seizure, and has said Iran does not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats. He has stated that Iran has prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield. Iranian authorities have declined to confirm participation in the next round of talks, and analysts suggest this is a calculated use of absence as leverage.