US president Donald Trump said on Tuesday no talks were taking place with Iran and none was scheduled, and he insisted the Strait of Hormuz was open, contradicting an earlier Iranian assertion that the critical waterway remained shut to shipping.
The receding prospects of a deal to end the nearly six-month conflict drove up oil prices again on Tuesday, while stock markets sagged and borrowing costs for major economies including the US hit multi-decade highs, amid concerns about the long-term inflationary and fiscal impact of the crisis.
A temporary ceasefire agreement expired on Monday and a senior Iranian official told Reuters his country was moving to a “fully offensive” military posture due to the diplomatic stalemate, though there were no reports of fresh strikes by either side on Tuesday.
“There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday.
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“The Naval Blockade remains in full force and effect. The Hormuz Strait is open and operating. All water mines have been removed or detonated,” he added.
On Monday, Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy, had sounded an optimistic note, saying talks with Iran were still under way and were “probably more robust” than they had ever been.
Despite Trump’s typically ebullient remarks about the situation in the Gulf, preliminary shipping data on Tuesday showed ship crossings via the Strait of Hormuz were still in single digits on Monday.
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The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it received a report on Tuesday that a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting outbound in the Strait of Hormuz, causing engine room damage and a crew casualty.
The remaining crew were being assisted by the Omani coast guard, according to the report.
Top Iranian negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in comments published by state media that the strait would remain shut until the US met the conditions of an interim deal signed with Iran in June.
These conditions include the US lifting its blockade of Iranian ports, lifting oil sanctions, releasing Tehran’s frozen assets, and ending threats and military operations on all fronts, Ghalibaf told parliament.
A memorandum of understanding signed on June 17th had set a 60-day time frame for a broader deal on Iran’s nuclear programme and US sanctions. That period elapsed on Monday and Trump said he had no plans to extend it.
The agreement, which declared the “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts”, had quickly unravelled over a dispute about control of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the war.
Both Trump and Tehran have frequently switched between threats and more emollient rhetoric as they seek a way out of the crisis, which erupted when the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28th.
Iran remains open to dialogue with the US but does not confuse negotiations with surrender, Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, said on Tuesday, according to the semi-official Fars news agency. – Reuters
