President Donald Trump has suggested talks aimed at ending the war in Iran could resume this week, after negotiations collapsed at the weekend, prompting the US to blockade Iranian ports.
“You should stay there [Islamabad], really, because something could be happening over the next two days, and we’re more inclined to go there,” Trump was quoted as saying in an interview with the New York Post. His remarks came as the American military said no ships had passed through the US-enforced blockade of Iranian ports and coastal areas in the first 24 hours of the operation.
The stand-off has raised doubts over the prospects for a two-week ceasefire that is due to expire next week.
The Iranian side has not yet responded to Trump’s remarks, but United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said it was “highly probable” that talks would restart. Gulf, Pakistani and Iranian officials also said negotiating teams from Washington and Tehran could return to Pakistan later this week, with no date yet agreed, Reuters news agency reports.
Hopes that diplomacy might continue helped soothe oil markets, pushing benchmark prices below $100 on Tuesday. Source: bbc.com/news
