Full story
US-Iran Talks Fail
US Vice President JD Vance announced that 21 hours of negotiations with Iran concluded without a signed peace agreement.
The main sticking point was Tehran's refusal to accept Washington's demand for a fundamental commitment not to develop nuclear weapons.
Trump declared, It doesn't matter to me whether we make a deal or not. The fact is, we won.
Iran linked the issue of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz to Israeli strikes on Lebanon.
Trump announced the start of a US Navy demining operation in the Strait of Hormuz, complaining that NATO did not help.
Strait of Hormuz Blockade
The Strait of Hormuz remained closed as the US began a demining operation while imposing a full naval blockade on Iran.
Trump said the United States will impose a full naval blockade on Iran, similar to what was done with Venezuela.
The Guardian reported that Iran was unable to find the mines it laid and did not have the capacity to remove them.
The closure of the strait sent fuel prices soaring and created the world's largest energy crisis in decades.
CENTCOM announced that two navy guided-missile destroyers crossed the strait to begin clearing mines.
NATO Rift
Trump repeatedly criticized NATO for not participating in the Hormuz operation.
The Baltic states took a different approach, with Estonia signaling readiness to deploy demining vessels.
Lithuania expressed willingness to provide troops to assist Washington.
The Guardian reported that the Baltic states were among the first to respond to Trump's call to increase defense spending.
Trump warned China would face big problems if it exported weapons to Iran.
