US, Iran may resume peace talks this week despite port blockade

Negotiating teams from the US and Iran could return to Islamabad this week to resume talks to end the war after the collapse of weekend negotiations prompted Washington to impose a blockade on Iranian ports.

While the US blockade drew angry rhetoric from Tehran, signs that diplomatic engagement might continue helped calm oil markets, pushing benchmark prices below $100 on Tuesday.

The highest-level talks between the two adversaries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution ended in the Pakistani capital without a breakthrough at the weekend, raising doubts over the survival of a two-week ceasefire that still has a week to run.

But a source involved in the talks said on Tuesday both countries could return as early as the end of this week, and that a proposal had been shared with Washington and Tehran to resend their delegations.

"No firm date has been set, with the delegations keeping Friday through Sunday open," a senior Iranian source told the Reuters news agency.

US President Donald Trump said Iran had been in touch on Monday and wanted to make a deal, adding that he would not sanction any agreement that allowed Tehran to possess a nuclear weapon.

Iran calls blockade 'piracy' 

Since the United States and Israel launched their joint attack on February 28, Iran effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz to all vessels except its own, saying passage would be permitted only under Iranian control and subject to a fee. The fallout has been widespread, as nearly a fifth of the world's oil and gas previously flowed through the narrow waterway.

In a countermeasure, the US military began blocking shipping traffic in and out of Iran's ports on Monday. Tehran has threatened to hit naval ships going through the strait and to retaliate against its Gulf neighbors' ports.

An Iranian military spokesperson called any US restrictions on international shipping "piracy," warning that if Iranian ports were threatened, no port in the Gulf or Gulf of Oman would be secure. Any military vessels approaching the strait would violate the ceasefire, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said.

The US blockade has further clouded the outlook for global energy security and the supply of a vast array of goods that rely on petroleum.

Reflecting the growing disruption, the International Energy Agency on Tuesday sharply cut its forecasts for global oil supply and demand growth, saying both are now expected to fall from 2025 levels as war in the Middle East disrupts oil flows and weighs on the global economy.

Reaction to the US blockade 

The United States' NATO allies including Britain and France said they would not be drawn into the conflict by taking part in the blockade, stressing instead the need to reopen the waterway.

To that end, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will chair a video conference in Paris on Friday for countries that are willing to contribute to the defensive multilateral mission to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz when security conditions permit, the French presidency said on Tuesday.

Senior diplomats will hold a video call on Wednesday ahead of the leaders meeting, two European diplomats said.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said it was important to press on with peace negotiations to end the conflict.

"It is necessary to continue working in order to advance peace negotiations, making every possible effort to stabilize the situation and reopen the (Hormuz) Strait, which is fundamental for us, not only for fuel supplies but also for fertilizers," Meloni told reporters in Verona.

Macron also urged more peace talks, saying he had spoken on Monday with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and US President Donald Trump and insisting the Strait be reopened unconditionally as soon as possible.

"Under these circumstances, negotiations should be able to resume quickly, with the support of the key stakeholders," he said.

China said the US blockade was "dangerous and irresponsible" and would only aggravate tensions.

"The US increased military deployments and took a targeted blockade action, which will only exacerbate tensions and undermine the already fragile ceasefire agreement," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun. "This is dangerous and irresponsible behavior."