Trump says naval blockade of Hormuz after Islamabad talks collapse

US President Donald Trump Sunday said the US Navy would immediately begin a blockade to prevent ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, which is a critical global energy route, after US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan ended without an agreement. In a post on social media, Trump said that he had instructed the US Navy to seek and interdict every vessel in international waters that has paid a toll to Iran. He added that anyone paying an illegal toll will not have safe passage on the high seas.
Trump also said the US was ready to finish up Iran at the appropriate moment, stressing that Tehran’s nuclear ambitions were at the core of the failure of negotiations to end the war. Trump said Iran is unwilling to abandon its nuclear ambitions after talks between American and Iranian negotiators in Islamabad. The move appears aimed at asserting strategic control over the vital waterway, responsible for the transportation of 20 per cent of global oil supplies before the war.
Meanwhile, Iran’s delegation left Islamabad for Tehran after talks with the United States ended without agreement, Iranian media reported on Sunday. The war with Iran incurred about 35 billion shekels ($11.52 billion) in budgetary expenses, including 22 billion shekels for defense, Israel’s finance ministry said on Sunday, citing a preliminary estimate. The ministry said the amount has already been incorporated into the 2026 budget.