THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Trump said that a U.S. Navy destroyer had fired on an Iran-flagged vessel that was trying to evade a blockade. He also said an American delegation was heading to Pakistan for more peace talks, but an Iranian official said there were “no plans” for negotiations.
Iran on Monday toughened its threats to retaliate after the United States attacked and seized an Iranian cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz, an escalation that put pressure on the fragile cease-fire set to expire this week.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman also said Monday that there were “no plans” in place for the next round of peace talks in Pakistan, even as President Trump said American negotiators would arrive in the country in the evening for a second round of negotiations since the two-week truce went into effect on April 8. A White House official said Vice President JD Vance was expected to lead the delegation.
Esmail Baghaei, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, accused the United States of engaging in actions that in “no way demonstrate seriousness in pursuing a diplomatic process,” according to Iran’s state news agency, IRNA.
The comments from Iran echoed similar rhetoric from the run-up to the first round of talks, which took place over a week ago and ended without an agreement to end the war. At the time, Iran’s top negotiator had cast doubt on the negotiations even taking place just hours before the Iranian delegation arrived in Pakistan.
A U.S. Navy destroyer fired on the Iranian cargo ship on Sunday after it defied a weeklong American blockade of Iran’s ports, Mr. Trump said. Marines were searching the ship as officials weighed whether to tow it to Oman, a U.S. official said.
Iran’s armed forces warned that they would soon retaliate against the United States for what they called “armed piracy,” according to Tasnim, a semiofficial Iranian news agency. Iran War Live Updates » | Tyler Pager, Shirin Hakim, Sanam Mahoozi, Rebecca F. Elliott and Aaron Boxerman | Monday, April 20, 2026
