Trump holds talks on prolonged Iran blockade, urges Tehran to reach a deal

WASHINGTON/DUBAI/ISLAMABAD, May 2 ------ Donald Trump discussed how to mitigate the impact of a possible months-long US blockade of Iran's ports with oil companies, a White House official said, as the US president urged Tehran to "get smart soon" and sign a deal.

Tuesday's talks with oil executives followed a deadlock in efforts to resolve the conflict, which has led the United States to try to squeeze Iran's oil exports with a naval blockade aimed at forcing it to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.

While Washington and Tehran traded public threats, mediator Pakistan was trying to avoid escalation while the two sides continued to exchange messages on a potential deal, a Pakistani source told Reuters on Wednesday. Trump has said Iran can call if it wants to talk and, in a post on Truth Social earlier on Wednesday, said Tehran "couldn't get its act together."

The president and the oil executives "discussed the steps President Trump has taken to alleviate global oil markets and steps we could take to continue the current blockade for months if needed and minimize impact on American consumers," the White House official said. Oil prices rose more than 6% on Wednesday, with the Brent contract hitting a one-month high, on the prospect of a lengthy blockade. The war has cost the US military $25 billion so far, a senior Pentagon official said on Wednesday, providing the first official estimate of the price tag for the conflict.

Iran has pledged to continue disrupting traffic through the strait as long as it is threatened, which may mean more Middle East oil supply disruptions from the conflict, which has killed thousands and caused global economic upheaval.

Tehran warned on Wednesday of "unprecedented military action" against continued US blockading of Iran-linked vessels. Trump has said Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, while Tehran says its nuclear ambitions are peaceful. "They don't know how to sign a non-nuclear deal. They'd better get smart soon!" Trump said in a social media post, without explaining what such a deal would entail.

The post featured a mock-up image of him in dark glasses and wielding a machine gun with the caption "No more Mr. Nice Guy." The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that the United States is asking ​other countries to ‌join a new international coalition that ​would enable ​ships to navigate the ⁠Strait of ​Hormuz after traffic through ​the waterway stalled. The proposed coalition, dubbed the "Maritime ‌Freedom ⁠Construct", would share information, coordinate diplomatically and help ​enforce ​sanctions, ⁠the Journal said, citing an ​internal State ​Department ⁠cable.

Source: gmanetwork.com