Donald Trump Extends Iran Ceasefire While Keeping U.S. Blockade in Place

President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire with Iran beyond its Wednesday expiration while keeping the U.S. blockade of Iran’s trade by sea in place, as he told audiences that Tehran must unify around a “unified proposal.”

In a Truth Social post, Trump said the U.S. agreed to a request by Pakistani mediators “to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal … and discussions are concluded, one way or the other.”

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NBC News reported that Trump said Iran’s “fractured” leadership needed more time to submit negotiating terms and that a U.S. blockade of its ports would remain in place.

The New York Times described the status of U.S.-Iranian negotiations as unclear on Wednesday morning, hours after Trump said he was extending a fragile cease-fire.

The BBC likewise reported that Trump said he would extend the cease-fire until negotiations conclude, while UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre reporting showed attacks continuing in the Strait of Hormuz.

Multiple outlets tied the extension to Pakistan’s mediation, with Reuters reporting that Trump’s extension was linked to Pakistani mediators and that it was not clear whether Iran or Israel would agree.

Even as the cease-fire was extended, Trump said the blockade would continue, and the AP reported that the U.S. military maintained its blockade of Iranian ports as diplomatic efforts to resume talks faced new complications.

While Trump’s cease-fire extension was announced, shipping monitors and multiple reports described attacks in and around the Strait of Hormuz that threatened to complicate diplomacy.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported early Wednesday that a boat belonging to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps attacked a container ship near the Strait of Hormuz, with the BBC adding that the outbound cargo ship was fired upon “eight nautical miles west of Iran” and was stopped in the water.

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The BBC said the incident followed an earlier attack on a container ship “15 nautical miles northeast of Oman” by an IRGC “gun boat” that caused “heavy damage to the bridge,” while also reporting that the crew were “safe and accounted for.”

The Guardian reported a second ship coming under attack in the strait, stating that a cargo ship was fired at “about 8 nautical miles northwest of Iran,” and it quoted UKMTO’s warning that “UKMTO is aware of high levels of activity in the SoH (strait of Hormuz) area and encourages vessels to report any suspicious activity.”

The New York Times described the earlier container-ship incident as a gunboat attack “off the coast of Oman,” saying the bridge sustained “heavy damage” and that “No radio warning was issued before the vessel was fired upon.”

AP News similarly said Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard attacked a container ship, damaging it but causing no injuries, and it described a second cargo ship that was fired upon and stopped in the water with “no reported damage to the vessel.”

Reuters, as carried by Internazionale, also described the broader pattern of attacks and blockade-related tensions, including Iran’s condemnation of U.S. intercepting and seizing commercial Iranian ships at sea.

Iran’s public posture toward the cease-fire extension was described as skeptical and contested, with multiple outlets quoting Iranian officials and advisers who dismissed the move or framed it as a tactic.

The New York Times reported that there was “no public response from top Iranian officials” to Trump’s announcement, while it quoted an adviser to Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf dismissing the extension as meaningless.

In a post carried by the BBC, Mahdi Mohammadi wrote: “The extension of the cease-fire by Donald Trump has no meaning. The losing side cannot set the terms,” and he added that the continuation of Trump’s “siege” was “no different from bombardment” and “must be met with a military response.”

The BBC also reported that Mohammadi said, “The time for Iran to take the initiative has come.”

Reuters, as carried by Internazionale, said Tasnim News Agency repeated threats to break the U.S. blockade by force and that an adviser to Iran’s lead negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said Trump’s announcement “may be a ploy.”

NBC News described Trump’s view that Iran’s leadership was “fractured,” and it said Iran’s top negotiator warned it would not negotiate “under the shadow of threat” and had prepared “new cards on the battlefield.”

The AP reported that Trump said the cease-fire extension was needed because the Iranian leadership is “seriously fractured,” and it described Iran’s balking at further discussions.

Pakistan’s role as mediator was central to the extension, with multiple reports describing how Pakistani leaders pressed for more time and how U.S. officials weighed whether Iran would respond.

Reuters, as carried by Internazionale, said Trump’s extension was tied to a request by Pakistani mediators and that the U.S. and Israel began the war on February 28 with aerial bombardments of Iran, while the conflict spread to Gulf states and Lebanon after Hezbollah joined.

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The Times of Israel described the extension as a major about-face, saying Trump announced it hours before a two-week ceasefire was set to expire and that the decision was made at the request of Pakistani mediators, including Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

In the same report, Trump wrote on Truth Social that “Based on the fact that the government of Iran is seriously fractured,” and it quoted him directing the military to “continue the blockade” while extending the ceasefire “until such time as their proposal is submitted.”

Qazinform similarly reported that Trump said the U.S. would “continue the Blockade” and “extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other.”

The AP said the White House put on hold Vice President JD Vance’s planned trip to Pakistan for a second round of truce talks because Tehran had balked at further discussions and had not responded to American positions.

CNN described the U.S. administration’s “conundrum” of “virtual silence from the Iranians” in the days prior, saying the U.S. had sent Iran a list of broad deal points and that there had been no response as Vance prepared to depart.

The stakes described across the reports ranged from human losses to economic disruption and the operational future of the Strait of Hormuz.

NBC News reported that Iran’s forensics chief said nearly 3,400 people had been killed in the country since U.S.-Israeli strikes began Feb. 28, and it added that more than 2,200 people had been killed in Lebanon, 32 had been killed in Gulf states, and 23 had died in Israel, while also stating that thirteen U.S. service members had been killed and two more died of noncombat causes.

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The Guardian reported that “More than two million people have lost their jobs in Iran as a result of the war,” and it said the war inflicted severe damage on Iran’s critical infrastructure, including “its oil and gas facilities, petrochemical industries, steel plants and aluminium factories.”

It also cited estimates from Hadi Kahalzadeh that “10 to 12 million jobs, roughly 50% of Iran’s workforce, are at risk,” and it quoted Gholamhossein Mohammadi saying initial estimates showed the war led to the loss of more than one million jobs and direct and indirect unemployment of two million people.

The New York Times and Reuters-linked reporting also tied the diplomatic uncertainty to energy markets, with the New York Times noting that Prime Minister Keir Starmer and President Emmanuel Macron were expected to host a two-day conference in London of more than 30 countries to discuss detailed military plans to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

AP News added that Scott Bessent said the blockade of Iranian ports “directly targets the regime’s primary revenue lifelines,” and it quoted Bessent saying “Kharg Island storage will be full and the fragile Iranian oil wells will be shut in,” while also stating that Kharg Island is considered “the beating heart of Iran’s oil industry.”

Across the accounts, the extension did not end the risk of renewed violence, with the BBC quoting Mahdi Mohammadi that the siege must be met with a “military response,” and with the New York Times describing preparations by multiple governments to reopen the strait “as soon as conditions permit.”