Top House Democrat says Trump’s Iran talks assessment not close to reality

An advisor to Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Tuesday the US blockade must be met with a military response, dismissing any ceasefire extension proposed by US President Donald Trump as "meaningless."

“Extending the ceasefire by Trump has no meaning. The losing side cannot dictate terms. Continuing the blockade is no different from bombing and must be met with a military response. Moreover, any extension of the ceasefire by Trump is certainly a way to buy time for a surprise attack. Now is the time for Iran to take the initiative," Mehdi Mohammadi posted on X.

US President Donald Trump said he has extended the ceasefire with Iran after Pakistan requested more time for Tehran to present a unified negotiating position.

“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured … and upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” Trump posted on social media.

He added that he had directed the US military to maintain the naval blockade of Iran while remaining ready for further action.

“I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other,” Trump added.

Iran’s negotiating team has informed the United States through a Pakistani intermediary that it will not attend talks in Islamabad on Wednesday and that there is currently no prospect of participation, IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News reported late Tuesday.

Tasnim, citing sources, said the reason was what it described as a US breach of commitments.

The report said Iran had accepted a 10-point framework and a ceasefire mediated by Pakistan, but stepped back because of what it called Washington’s contradictory behavior.

Tasnim said the United States had also raised demands beyond the initial framework for the Islamabad talks, creating obstacles and deadlock in the negotiations.

Pakistan’s efforts to persuade the United States to lift its naval blockade and release a seized Iranian ship and its crew have not yet produced results, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Tuesday.

Iran could attend talks in Pakistan if the United States abandons its policy of pressure and threats, the official said.

The United States is creating new obstacles every day instead of resolving issues, the official added.

Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said Tehran had received some signs that the United States was ready to end its blockade, and that the next round of negotiations would take place in Islamabad once that happened, the BBC reported on Tuesday.

“When that happens, the next round of negotiations will take place in Islamabad,” the BBC quoted Iravani as saying at the United Nations in New York.

The BBC said Iravani added that lifting the US blockade on the Strait of Hormuz was a condition for talks to resume.

“If the US wants a political solution, they are ready, if they want war then Iran is also ready,” he said, according to the report.