President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting military, government and infrastructure sites.
Following the announcement of a two-week ceasefire, initial U.S.-Iran talks in Pakistan earlier this month failed to reach a peace deal. The original ceasefire is set to expire on April 22.
Trump said on Sunday that U.S. negotiators would return to Islamabad on Monday for a new round of talks. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Vice President JD Vance would accompany special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law, to Islamabad.
But Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Monday that Tehran has "no plans" to participate.
Iran to respond to US 'aggression' against cargo vessel, military says
The spokesperson for Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters -- the country's top joint military command -- said in a statement on Monday that Iran would respond to the U.S. "aggression" against an Iranian merchant vessel in the Gulf of Oman, Iranian state television reported on Telegram.
Iranian forces will take "necessary action" in response to the American seizure of the M/V Touska on Sunday, the spokesperson said.
-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian
2 hours and 56 minutes ago
China concerned by US seizure of Iranian vessel, official says
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun on Monday expressed concern over the U.S. disabling and seizing the Iran-flagged M/V Touska cargo vessel on Sunday.
Guo said at a press conference that the "relevant parties" should take a "responsible attitude," while reiterating that the Strait of Hormuz is an "international strait" and that "unimpeded passage" is a "common interest of the international community."
The Touska's most recent port may have been Klang, Malaysia, but before that it departed from Zhuhai in southern China.
A view of Iranian-flagged cargo ship M/V Touska as the U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class Aegis guided missile destroyer USS Spruance conducts its interception in a location given as the north Arabian Sea, in this screen capture from a video released on April 19, 2026.
Centcom/via Reuters
-ABC News' Karson Yiu
3 hours and 4 minutes ago
Iran has 'no plans' for new round of talks, spokesperson says
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Monday that Iran has not yet made any decision regarding a potential new round of peace talks with the U.S. in Islamabad.
"As of now that I am here, we have no plans for the next round of negotiations," Baghaei said in a press conference, as quoted by Iran's semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
Referring to the possible continuation of talks in Pakistan, Baghaei said, "We have clearly announced the red lines and unacceptable items from the beginning, and insisting on them will not change our principled positions."
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei attends an interview in Tehran, Iran, on April 5, 2026.
Majid-asgaripour/via Reuters
Baghaei told reporters that the U.S. and Israel are to blame for the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.
"The international community must hold these two actors accountable for making the region insecure," Baghaei said, adding that U.S. conduct "has shown that it is not serious about pursuing the diplomatic process."
Baghaei cited ongoing Israeli strikes in Lebanon, the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports and Sunday's seizure of an Iranian cargo vessel as "clear examples" of "aggressive acts."
Baghaei added that the repeated U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran over the past nine months have undermined Tehran's trust in American diplomacy.
-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian
3:28 AM EDT
Marines from USS Tripoli seized Iranian vessel, CENTCOM says
U.S. Central Command posted a video of the seizure of the Iran-flagged M/V Touska container ship, which it said was seized by helicopter-borne Marines on Sunday.
CENTCOM said the vessel was first disabled by fire from the guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance after the M/V Touska "failed to comply with repeated warnings from U.S. forces over a six-hour period."
The Marines that seized the Iranian vessel were operating from the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, CENTCOM said.
