President Donald Trump’s clunky attempts to force Iran back to the negotiating table have been bluntly rebuffed as the clock ticks down on the ceasefire.
The 79-year-old president posted a tirade on Truth Social on Sunday morning, warning Iran of dire consequences if they did not take the deal the United States has put on the table.
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL and I hope they take it,” he wrote. “If they don’t the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant and every single Bridge, in Iran! NO MORE MR NICE GUY!”
The message was received in Tehran, where the Iranian official news agency, IRNA, posted a statement saying the country would not be attending the negotiations that were expected to begin Monday night, ahead of the ceasefire deadline on Wednesday.
“Iran stated that its absence from the second round of talks stems from what it called Washington’s excessive demands, unrealistic expectations, constant shifts in stance, repeated contradictions, and the ongoing naval blockade, which it considers a breach of the ceasefire,” IRNA wrote.
The statement was not attributed to a specific official or government figure.
The White House did not immediately respond to request for comment.
The Iranian Tasnim news agency reported that the sticking point for the negotiations is Trump’s decision to continue its blockade of the Iranian port.
“The Iranian negotiating team has underscored that as long as US President Donald Trump’s declaration regarding a naval blockade of Iran remains in place, there will be no negotiations,” the agency reported.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei wrote on X on Sunday that the blockade was a war crime.
“The United States’ so-called ‘blockade’ of Iran’s ports or coastline is not only a violation of Pakistani-mediated ceasefire but also both unlawful and criminal,” he said.
“Moreover, by deliberately inflicting collective punishment on the Iranian population, it amounts to war crime and crime against humanity.”
The uncertain status of the peace talks came as Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. had seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Strait, further escalating the conflict.
“U.S. Navy Guided Missile Destroyer USS SPRUANCE intercepted the TOUSKA in the Gulf of Oman, and gave them fair warning to stop. The Iranian crew refused to listen, so our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom [sic],” he boasted.
Trump has repeatedly refused to lift the blockade of Iran’s port, and has used his social media to attempt to intimidate Iran into folding.
His now-infamous Easter Sunday post where he demanded Iran “open the F—n’ Strait, you crazy b—--ds, or you’ll be living in Hell,” and ended with: “Praise be to Allah,” was reportedly part of his negotiation strategy.
The president reportedly later said he wanted to be seen by Iran as “unstable and insulting,” in the hopes it would scare them to the table.
When the Iranians didn’t comply, he went further, posting that “a whole civilization will die tonight.”
Trump’s high-stakes bluff was an attempt to force Iran to fold. But handling of the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program are big obstacles to agreement.
“We are still not there yet to move on to an actual meeting because there are issues that the Americans have not yet abandoned their maximalist position,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said Sunday.
