U.S. Iran Peace Talks Uncertain as Cease-Fire Nears Expiry and Strait of Hormuz Standoff Intensifies

President Donald Trump said Tuesday morning that he does not want to extend the cease-fire between the United States and Iran, which is set to expire in the early hours of Wednesday, Iran time.

Speaking to CNBC, Trump insisted the U.S. Is in a strong negotiating position and will likely emerge with a “great” deal, adding that he expects the U.S. To resume bombing Iran if no progress is made in the second round of peace talks scheduled for Wednesday in Islamabad, Pakistan.

“I expect to be bombing because that would be a better attitude,” Trump said, noting that the military is “raring to go.”

Iran has insisted it will not negotiate under threat or force, with Reza Amiri Moghadam, Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, calling the position “a truth universally acknowledged” and “a substantial, Islamic and theological principle.”

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf echoed this stance, warning that Iran is “prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield” and does not accept negotiations “under the shadow of threats.”

The stalemate comes amid an escalating struggle over the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for global oil trade, which Iran has sought to control since the start of the war.

Over the weekend, U.S. Forces fired on and seized an Iranian vessel in the Gulf of Oman after it attempted to bypass the U.S. Naval blockade, an act Iran says violates the cease-fire.

The U.S., in turn, accuses Iran of violating the cease-fire by firing bullets in the Strait, which Tehran has used to cripple global trade since the war began on February 28, 2026.

With the cease-fire set to expire, Pakistani authorities have tightened security in Islamabad ahead of the planned talks, where a U.S. Delegation led by Vice President JD Vance is expected to arrive early Wednesday.

Iranian state media reported Tuesday that no Iranian delegation had arrived in Pakistan “so far,” leaving it uncertain whether Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will have counterparts to negotiate with.

A previous 21-hour negotiating session on April 11 ended without agreement, raising the stakes for this week’s talks.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry has urged both sides to extend the two-week cease-fire to “give dialogue and diplomacy a chance.”

Global leaders continue to prioritize the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around a fifth of global oil production flows.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron led an international summit in Paris last week to support freedom of navigation in the Strait and have since confirmed plans to establish a defensive multinational mission to protect merchant vessels and conduct mine clearance operations, to be enacted “as soon as conditions permit following a sustainable cease-fire agreement.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for “an immediate and comprehensive” cease-fire to ensure normal passage via the key trade route.

The head of the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday that the Iran war has caused the “biggest” energy crisis in history, compounded by the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.