President Trump told Bloomberg on Monday that he is “highly unlikely” to extend the ceasefire with Iran if Wednesday evening comes and goes without a peace deal.
During a phone interview with White House correspondent Jeff Mason, Trump said that the truce ends on “Wednesday evening Washington time.”
The president initially announced the ceasefire on April 7, after threatening to authorize strikes on Iranian civilian infrastructure and warning that a “whole civilization will die” in Iran.
The president’s remarks to Bloomberg come as administration officials are set to travel to Islamabad, Pakistan, this week for a second round of peace talks.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Hill on Sunday that Vice President Vance will lead that delegation, which will also include U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law.
The Hill has reached out to Vance’s office for clarification on when he will depart the nation’s capital for Islamabad.
Also Monday, Trump dismissed that he is under “pressure” to cut a deal with Iran.
“I am under no pressure whatsoever, although, it will all happen, relatively quickly! Time is not my adversary, the only thing that matters is that we finally, after 47 years, straighten out the MESS that other Presidents let happen because they didn’t have the Courage or Foresight to do what had to be done with respect to Iran,” the president wrote on his Truth Social platform.
During his interview with Bloomberg, Trump struck a similar tone, saying that he is “not going to be rushed into making a bad deal” with the Iranian regime. The president has demanded that Tehran to abandon its nuclear program.
“We’ve got all the time in the world,” he added.
As for the Strait of Hormuz, Trump told Bloomberg that the U.S. Navy would keep its blockade of the waterway in place “until a deal is signed.” The blockade began on April 13.
U.S. Central Command (Centcom) said Sunday that naval forces, after issuing “multiple warnings,” intercepted a Iranian-flagged cargo ship attempting to bypass that blockade.
“Since the blockade’s commencement, U.S. forces have directed 25 commercial vessels to turn around or return to an Iranian port,” Centcom added.
Esmaeil Baqaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters Monday that the interception of the ship was a violation of the ceasefire. He also said that the regime has “no plans for the next round of negotiations” with the U.S.
But Trump told Bloomberg that he has “five other ships I’ll take today if I have to” in the strait
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