Donald Trump says he will extend Iran ceasefire until negotiations conclude — BBC News

[0:00] Hours before, a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran was due to expire. [0:06] And shortly after signaling that American forces were prepared to resume strikes, [0:11] President Trump announced an extension to the truce. [0:15] In a post on social media, the president said the ceasefire would remain in place [0:19] until Iran's leadership presents a unified proposal to end the conflict. [0:24] He added that the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports would continue until negotiations are concluded. [0:32] The status of the U.S.-Iran talks remains unclear. [0:36] The White House has confirmed that Vice President J.D. Vance's planned trip to Pakistan for peace negotiations is cancelled for now. [0:45] He had been expected to travel to Islamabad for the second time this month [0:49] in an effort to help finalize an agreement with Iranian officials. [0:53] For the latest, let's talk to our North America correspondent, David Willis. [0:58] So, David, the ceasefire is extended, but when it comes to talks, it's very unclear what might happen next. [1:07] Very much so, Salih. [1:08] President Trump is saying in that Truth Social media post that he is extending the ceasefire agreement, [1:17] an open-ended extension in response to Pakistani mediators' pleas, [1:24] but he is not lifting the U.S. blockade on ships seeking to enter or leave Iranian ports. [1:34] And that has been a move that has incensed the Iranians. [1:39] There have even been suggestions that it could prompt some sort of military response in and of itself. [1:46] It's been likened by itself to an act of war as well as a breach of the ceasefire agreement. [1:53] As for the extension of the ceasefire, well, the Iranians have also dismissed that, calling it meaningless. [2:00] So, where are we now? [2:02] Well, there is certainly time for both sides to figure out what they might be able to talk about [2:09] when and if they go back to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. [2:14] But there is so much mistrust between the two sides. [2:18] It's even the suggestion on Iran's part that this all could be a ruse on the part of the Trump administration of the United States [2:27] to buy the U.S. some time in order for it to mount another surprise attack on Iran. [2:35] David, thank you so much. [2:36] David Willis there, thank you so much for the latest details on that. [2:39] Well, Iran's most senior leaders have yet to comment on the ceasefire extension. [2:44] The Tasnim News Agency, which is affiliated with the country's revolutionary guard, [2:49] says Tehran did not request an extension and has reiterated threats to break the U.S. blockade by force. [2:57] Our chief international correspondent, Lise Doucette, is reporting from Tehran on condition [3:02] none of her material is used on the BBC's Persian service. [3:06] These restrictions apply to all international media organizations operating in Iran. [3:11] And she gave us the government's reaction to the prospect of further talks with the U.S. [3:18] Well, I don't think they have much faith in this process. [3:21] We were at the foreign ministry this afternoon and we're told the foreign minister was locked in meetings. [3:26] They were still exchanging messages through mediators, [3:29] but they still hadn't decided whether to return to talks with the United States. [3:33] And we sat down with the foreign ministry spokesperson, Ismail Baghaei. [3:37] He had been at the last round of face-to-face talks in Islamabad. [3:41] He listed all the reasons. [3:43] President Trump's threats to bomb Iran, its naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, [3:48] the seizing of an Iranian vessel, all of which, he said, were ceasefire violations. [3:53] So I put it to him that Iran was also violating the truce. [3:57] Under the terms of the ceasefire, you are supposed, you said you would completely pull back from the Strait of Hormuz. [4:04] You haven't. [4:05] Do you remember the first days? [4:08] Ceasefire in Lebanon was part of the ceasefire package. [4:12] So that's agreed now. [4:13] What about the Strait of Hormuz? [4:15] That's agreed. [4:17] We agreed on last Friday. [4:21] And you remember what happened. [4:22] After our foreign minister tweeted that Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with the terms of the ceasefire, [4:36] what was President Trump's reaction? [4:38] He immediately said, thank you, Iran. [4:41] And then minutes later or an hour later, he said that, but we would keep our blockade. [4:48] Another big reason, of course, is the huge distrust in this process. [4:53] Remember that the two previous rounds of talks with the U.S. last year in June, this year in February, [5:00] were shattered by U.S.-backed Israeli airstrikes. [5:03] So while Iran would welcome this extension of the ceasefire, [5:08] they feel there is a real risk of a return to war. [5:11] And pretty well every Iranian we speak to here believes that too. [5:14] Lise Doucette, who is in Tehran for us. [5:18] Well, the prime minister of Pakistan, Shabazz Sharif, has been reacting to the ceasefire extension in a post on X. [5:26] The prime minister said he sincerely thanked President Trump for accepting the request to extend the ceasefire [5:31] to allow diplomatic efforts to take their course, [5:34] adding that Pakistan would continue efforts for a negotiated settlement of the conflict. [5:39] The prime minister also stated his hopes that both sides would continue to observe this ceasefire [5:45] and the second round of talks scheduled in Islamabad would result in a permanent end to the conflict. [5:52] Well, let's go live to Islamabad now and speak to our diplomatic correspondent, Paul Adams, who is there for us. [5:58] Paul, is this diplomacy buying time or stalling? [6:06] I think it's a little bit of both. [6:07] I think there was a sense that Donald Trump, for various reasons, was reluctant to go back to an all-out assault, [6:15] something that could have triggered a very significant Iranian response, [6:20] something that America's Gulf allies would have been extremely nervous about. [6:24] So I think, in a way, he has straddled the line between a return to war and giving space for diplomacy [6:35] by putting off a resumption of hostilities, but maintaining what Iran regards as a hostile act, [6:43] which is this blockade, the U.S. blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, [6:47] is hoping to inflict a bit more economic pain on Iran and to concentrate minds there [6:55] on the possibility of a return to the diplomatic track. [7:00] I mean, Islamabad is still ready. [7:03] The lockdown of parts of the city that has been in place all week is still there. [7:08] I think Pakistani officials very much hope that this can still happen, [7:12] although I think the prospects of it happening in the near future, [7:16] by that I mean the next few days, seem at this point a little remote. [7:21] And we know that Pakistan is doing as much as it can behind the scenes to get the two sides together. [7:28] How much influence does it actually have? [7:30] This is a matter of national pride for Pakistan. [7:35] It really felt that this was an opportunity for it to emerge on the international stage [7:41] as an important mediator between these two countries, between the United States and Iran. [7:47] It has relations with both, and it has been keen to try and exploit that. [7:51] It's not, however, in a position to really lean on anyone. [7:55] It has no influence in that sense. [7:57] It is merely a facilitator and someone who thinks that they can bridge the differences. [8:04] They're in a position to pass messages. [8:06] We've seen the government officials here hosting meetings with Iranian and American diplomats, [8:13] very much in the heart of this frantic diplomatic effort to broker an extended ceasefire [8:23] and perhaps something bigger than that. [8:25] But as for the ability of Pakistan to actually influence the outcome, [8:29] the decision-making in either Washington or Tehran, that's another matter. [8:33] Okay, for now, thank you very much indeed, Paul Adams in Islamabad for us. [8:38] Well, let's discuss this with Joe Vocino, former spokesman for the U.S. Central Command [8:43] and author of When Every Word Counts, How to Earn Trust, Command Attention and Communicate Clearly [8:50] in Any Situation, which Joe is much needed, I would say, in this circumstance. [8:55] So give us your take on where we are. [8:59] It would seem there's a real stalemate on both sides. [9:03] There is not a U.S. delegation waiting in Islamabad. [9:08] J.D. Vance is not setting off to Pakistan. [9:11] What's your take on where we are at the moment? [9:14] Well, I think, Sally, that Iran has several advantages here. [9:18] And I think there's maybe several complexities that are compounding on the problem. [9:22] And maybe if I could just walk through them very quickly. [9:25] The first one is the Iranian government is split up between the Mullahs, the IRGC, and [9:30] the Iranian parliament. [9:32] All three must agree on a deal with the United States. [9:35] That's the first thing. [9:37] We don't think they're all agreeing right now. [9:38] The second piece is Iran has gone through multiple leadership changes since this war started [9:43] on February 28th. [9:44] In some cases, the Mullahs don't know which of the Mullahs are in charge, which ones are [9:50] alive, which ones are in the chain of command, which ones are making decisions. [9:55] Third, Mustafa Khomeini is two miles underground. [9:58] He's not on any communication device. [10:01] He is communicating with Ghalibov through passing notes to couriers. [10:05] That takes a lot of time. [10:07] Fourth, you know, think about Iran. [10:09] Iran has practiced delay tactics since 1979 when they held 66 Americans hostage for more than [10:15] a year. [10:16] They are experts at this. [10:18] It took two years to negotiate the Obama nuclear deal. [10:22] That was more than 160 pages of documents. [10:26] Each page had to be approved by the Ayatollah. [10:29] So the idea this was going to get done in a day or two weeks was never realistic. [10:34] But you say that Iran, given what you've just said, sorry to interrupt you, Joe, but we're [10:39] short on time. [10:40] Given what you've just said about what's going on inside Iran, and you say Iran, therefore, [10:44] has the upper hand. [10:46] I mean, Trump is saying the Iranian government is seriously fractured. [10:50] I mean, is that a strength or a weakness? [10:53] It's neither a strength nor a weakness. [10:55] It's a complexity here for getting this deal done in terms of who Ghalibov needs to communicate [11:03] with how that communication takes place, who's really in charge, who's going to render a [11:08] decision. [11:09] I think that's just an extra layer of complexity here. [11:12] So given what you've just said, how do you see this progressing? [11:18] Because President Trump is a very different president, as you say, to Obama, who negotiated [11:24] with the American team the previous deal with Iran. [11:27] So how will this progress, given what you've just said about Iran and how it behaves? [11:33] I always thought this was going to go through the summer and maybe through the end of the [11:37] year. [11:38] I think President Trump has tried every tool of the art of the deal. [11:42] He's tried to negotiate. [11:44] He's tried to spin. [11:45] He's tried to claim he's got the upper hand. [11:47] He's tried to create advantages. [11:49] None of that works with Iran. [11:50] And I think this is going to be something that's going to continue to progress. [11:54] I think there's going to be a second phase of the campaign. [11:57] I think Iran believes it won the first round of the war just by surviving. [12:03] But if you're right on that, Joe, and it does go on for some time, I mean, the Strait [12:09] of Hormuz cannot be closed for that period of time. [12:12] The impact on the global economy would be huge. [12:14] It's already being felt quite keenly. [12:18] Sure. [12:19] And again, another advantage to Iran. [12:21] They understand the political situation in the United States. [12:25] They understand following the polls. [12:27] They're following the gas prices. [12:28] So again, they feel like they have another advantage there.