Iran rules out resuming US talks while naval blockade remains in place

 Iran will not send a negotiating team for a second round of talks with the United States as long as the US naval blockade on Iranian ports remains in place, an informed source told Tasnim News Agency on April 19.

Message exchanges between Tehran and Washington through the Pakistani mediator have continued since the end of the first round of talks in Islamabad, Tasnim reported.

The exchange was essentially a continuation of the process during the first round, which ultimately broke down due to what Tehran described as US overreach and ambition.

The Pakistani mediator has passed further messages between the two sides since the end of the first round. The Iranian team has informed Washington that no negotiations will take place as long as President Donald Trump's declared naval blockade of Iran remains in force.

The message from Tehran hardens Iran's position at a sensitive moment. Trump said on April 17 that a deal to end the war could be signed in Islamabad within days and that he might travel to Pakistan for the occasion. A Pakistani diplomatic source separately told Reuters that a memorandum of understanding could be signed at an upcoming meeting, followed by a full agreement within 60 days.

Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping on April 17 for the remainder of the Pakistan-brokered two-week ceasefire, under conditions set by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Tehran has warned that continuation of the US naval blockade would be treated as a violation of the ceasefire and would prompt the closure of the strait to hostile shipping.

Trump has said the blockade would remain in effect against Iran until what he called the transaction with Tehran was complete.

The outstanding issues between the two sides include the duration of any Iranian uranium enrichment suspension. Washington has proposed a 20-year halt, while Tehran has offered three to five years. Iran has demanded international sanctions be lifted, while the US has pressed for highly enriched uranium to be removed from Iranian territory.