Three ships came under fire in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, jeopardizing prospects for peace talks after a senior Iranian official said President Trump’s last-minute ceasefire extension “means nothing.”
The British military said Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps attacked and damaged the first vessel, though no injuries were reported. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center (UKMTO) said the master of a container ship reported being approached by an IRGC gunboat. No warning was given, and the gunboat then fired on the vessel, causing heavy damage to the bridge.
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency confirmed the incident, saying the container ship had “ignored repeated warnings.” The UKMTO did not immediately attribute responsibility for an attack on a second cargo vessel and said there were no injuries or damage on that ship. Iran’s Fars news agency reported that the Iranian Navy had attacked a third ship called the “Euphoria” and said it had “seized” two other vessels identified as the MSC-Francesca and the Epaminodes.
The attacks followed President Trump’s indefinite extension of a two-week ceasefire at the eleventh hour. Trump said he acted at the request of mediator Pakistan and that the extension would give Tehran time to present a “unified proposal.” A planned U.S. delegation trip to Islamabad for a second round of talks dissolved after Iran said it would not attend.
Mahdi Mohammadi, an adviser to Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, posted on X that “Trump’s ceasefire extension means nothing, the losing side cannot dictate terms.” Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said earlier that blockading Iranian ports is an act of war and a violation of the ceasefire, adding that the U.S. seizure of an Iranian ship on Sunday was “an even greater violation.”
Here are more developments on day 54 of the Middle East war: Iran’s economy | UK-France conference | International reaction | Airline fuel struggles | Points of contention
Trump says Iran flailing economically
Despite Iran’s refusal to attend talks this week, Trump has portrayed the country as economically imperiled. He posted on Truth Social that “Iran is collapsing financially! They want the Strait of Hormuz opened immediately—Starving for cash! Losing 500 Million Dollars a day. Military and Police complaining that they are not getting paid. SOS!!!”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent posted on X that, under Trump’s orders, the U.S. Navy will continue a blockade of Iran’s ports. He warned that Kharg Island storage would soon be full and that fragile Iranian wells could be shut in, saying constraining Iran’s maritime trade targets the regime’s primary revenue lifelines.
Conference seeks solution to Strait standoff
The United Kingdom and France are hosting a two-day conference beginning Wednesday to plan the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. One major challenge is clearing undersea mines Iran is believed to have placed. Military planners from more than 30 countries are meeting at an RAF base north of London to design a multinational mission to safeguard the strait amid concerns about oil and energy prices. A poll in the U.K. found one in 10 people are stockpiling fuel.
British defense officials have proposed deploying autonomous mine-hunting systems launched from motherships sent to the Gulf, but they cautioned any plan would take effect only after a sustained ceasefire between Iran and the U.S.
International reaction
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cautiously welcomed Trump’s ceasefire extension, calling it an “important step toward de-escalation and creating critical space for diplomacy and confidence-building” and urging parties to avoid actions that could undermine the truce and to engage constructively in negotiations.
China warned the Middle East is at a “critical stage” and said preventing a resumption of hostilities must be a priority. European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas criticized daily reversals over the strait’s status as reckless, said transit must remain free, and announced the EU was widening sanctions on Tehran, stating “none of us want to see a nuclear-armed Iran.”
High jet fuel prices squeeze airlines
The war and the strait blockade continue to disrupt global markets and raise costs, especially for airlines. Lufthansa said jet-fuel prices had doubled since the war’s start and announced cuts of 20,000 flights through October to conserve fuel. Reuters reported United Airlines forecast second-quarter and full-year profits below Wall Street estimates due to fuel shocks. The U.S. Department of Transportation said it is “taking a look” at Spirit Airlines at Trump’s request; Spirit has filed for bankruptcy twice in less than a year. Soaring fuel costs are adding uncertainty across the industry, and a low-cost carriers’ trade group recently asked Congress for temporary tax relief.
What are the major sticking points?
Washington’s main demands remain control over the Strait of Hormuz and limits on Iran’s nuclear program. The U.S. insists commercial shipping through the strategic waterway be fully restored; about 20% of the world’s crude oil and natural gas normally transits the strait. After U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, Iran began asserting control over the strait, blocking most commercial transit and imposing steep tolls on some ships that passed.
Vice President Vance said the first round of ceasefire talks broke down because Iran would not commit to forgoing a nuclear weapon. “The simple fact is that we need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon, and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Tehran’s principal demands for extending the ceasefire include an end to the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and guarantees that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah will not restart. Israel and Lebanon agreed to a 10-day ceasefire last week, pausing fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah; fresh talks between Israel and Lebanon are scheduled in Washington on Thursday.
Lauren Frayer in Glasgow, Scotland, Joel Rose in Washington, Jane Arraf in Amman, Jordan, and Kate Bartlett in Johannesburg contributed to reporting.