Middle East crisis live: Donald Trump claims Iran ‘wants to work a deal’ and confirms blockade of strait of Hormuz

A US official said “there is continued engagement between the US and Iran and forward motion on trying to get an agreement,” multiple outlets reported.

CNN’s reporting on the ongoing US-Iran conflict directly quoted this official. A Reuters alert also mentioned continuing engagement, citing an official.

The mention of continued engagement comes as Donald Trump continues to deploy strong language about Iran, adding to the confusion as to whether a diplomatic solution is on the horizon or highly uncertain.

President Trump’s comments on Iran during a last-minute White House press conference on Monday seemed to dash hopes of speedy diplomatic resolution to the ongoing conflict.

“They will never have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters moments after he received a DoorDash delivery of McDonalds from a woman to celebrate his tax bill, which removes levies from tips.

“If they don’t agree, there’s no deal. There’ll never be a deal. Iran will not have a nuclear weapon, and we’re going to get the dust back. We’ll get it back, either we’ll get it back from them, or we’ll take it.”

“We can’t let a country blackmail or extort the world, because that’s what they’re doing. They’re really blackmailing the world. We’re not going to let that happen,” Trump said at one point. Trump’s comments came shortly after his blockade of the strait of Hormuz went into effect, which has threatened to further roil global trade and oil markets.

“Iran is a wants to be a nuclear nation so they can exterminate the world. Not going to happen.”

At another point, when Trump was asked about some sort of prior ultimatum to Iran, he said: “I don’t want to comment on that but it won’t be pleasant”.

The US asked that Iran agree to a 20-year moratorium uranium enrichment during talks in Pakistan this weekend, Axios reported Monday.

Citing a source familiar with the situation as well as a US official, Axios said that Iran responded with a proposed “single digit” timeframe.

The US, per Axios, also wanted Iran to “remove all highly enriched uranium from the country.” Iran reportedly said the nation would consent to “monitored process of down-blending,” these two sources told Axios.

Disagreements over Iran’s nuclear program reportedly remain the logjam preventing a deal.

Donald Trump said Iran wants to make a deal and that he will not come to any agreement that allows Tehran to have a nuclear weapon.

Trump said that talks had hit a roadblock related to nuclear issues and that a “blockade” of ships transiting the strait of Hormuz had begun.

He said that Iran had “called this morning” and that “they’d like to work a deal.” Reuters could not immediately verify the claim.

“Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters during an impromptu press conference at the White House on Monday. “We can’t let a country blackmail or extort the world.”

When asked if oil tankers will be operating in the strait of Hormuz, he said: “Yeah, I think they’re going to be doing very well there. And I think they’re doing very well here [in the US]. You know, a lot of tankers are coming up here. They’re coming in empty and out full, and we have a great capacity to take care of that business.

US president Donald Trump claims that 34 ships went through the strait of Hormuz on Sunday, saying that would be the highest number since the “foolish closure” began.

Here is a summary of the day so far

• The US blockade ofall Iranian Gulf ports and coastal areas has begun. Seafarers and the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations have received notices warning that the blockade will apply to all vessel traffic, regardless of flag.

• Donald Trump vows that ships approaching US blockade of Iran’s ports will be ‘eliminated’. “Iran’s navy is laying at the bottom of the sea,” he wrote on social media platform Truth Social.

• Nato allies said on Monday they would not get involved in US president Donald Trump’s plan to blockade the strait of Hormuz, proposing instead to intervene only once fighting ends, in a move likely to anger Trump and increase strains in the alliance.

• Trump lashed out on social media at Pope Leo XIV, who, over the weekend, had called for an end to war without directly mentioning the conflict in Iran. The US president posted a more than 300-word diatribe on Truth Social accusing the pope of catering to the “Radical Left” and being “terrible” for foreign policy.

• The pope on Monday told reporters that he has “no intention to debate” with Trump over Iran – but went on to say that he will “continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems.”

Israel has summoned Italy’s ambassador on Monday to protest after foreign minister Antonio Tajani condemned Israel’s “unacceptable attacks” on civilians in Lebanon during a visit to Beirut, an Italian diplomatic source said.

This comes as Tajani wrote on X that he was in Beirut to “convey Italy’s solidarity following Israel’s unacceptable attacks against the civilian population.”

He called for dialogue between Lebanon and Israel and a “necessary and lasting ceasefire” adding: “Another escalation like in Gaza must be avoided at all costs.”

Tajani was in talks with Lebanese president Joseph Aoun and foreign minister Youssef Raggi.

Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Iran-backed group Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel on 2 March. Israel then responded with large-scale strikes and a ground invasion.

Italy’s government summoned Israel’s ambassador last week after saying Israeli forces fired warning shots at a convoy of Italian UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, damaging at least one vehicle but causing no injuries.

Nato allies said on Monday they would not get involved in US president Donald Trump’s plan to blockade the strait of Hormuz, proposing instead to intervene only once fighting ends, in a move likely to anger Trump and increase strains in the alliance.

This comes as the US president said the country’s military would work with other countries to block all maritime traffic in the waterway, after weekend talks failed to reach an agreement to end the six-week conflict with Iran. However, now leaders from countries who are part of Nato are saying they will not get involved.

“We’re not supporting the blockade,” British prime minister Keir Starmer told the BBC. “My decision has been very clearly that whatever the pressure, and there’s been some considerable pressure, we’re not getting dragged into the war,” he said.

Germany, Spain, Italy, Poland, and Greece have all ruled out sending naval forces to support the blockade.

However, France will organise a conference with Britain and other countries to create a multinational mission to restore navigation in the strait, French President Emmanuel Macron said on X on Monday.

“This strictly defensive mission, distinct from the belligerents, will be deployed as soon as the situation allows,” Macron said.

US president Donald Trump has claimed to have “obliterated” 158 Iranian ships as part of the US blockade of Iranian shores. “Iran’s navy is laying at the bottom of the sea,” he wrote on social media platform Truth Social.

He says that what they have not hit are Iran’s “fast attack ships”, because they are not considered “much of a threat” to the US blockade. He threatened to take down these ships using the same “system of kill” used against “drug dealers on boats”.

“Warning: If any of these ships come anywhere close to our blockade, they will be immediately eliminated, using the same system of kill that we use against the drug dealers on boats at Sea. It is quick and brutal,” he wrote – capitalising the words “blockade” and “eliminated”.

He added at the end: “P.S. 98.2% of Drugs coming into the U.S. by Ocean or Sea have stopped! Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

Iran’s president Masoud Pezeshkian has condemned US president Donald Trump’s attack on Pope Leo XIV “on behalf of the great nation of Iran,” adding that the desecration of “Jesus, the prophet of peace and brotherhood,” is not acceptable to “any free person”.

This comes after Trump launched an attack on Truth Social on the pope, calling him “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy”.

He added: “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon. I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a Country that was sending massive amounts of Drugs into the United States and, even worse, emptying their prisons, including murderers, drug dealers, and killers, into our Country.”

US Central Command said it would begin a blockade of all Iranian Gulf ports and coastal areas on Monday at 10am ET (5.30pm in Iran and 1400 GMT), meaning the operation should have kicked off as of now.

As previously reported, seafarers and the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations have received notices warning that the blockade will apply to all vessel traffic, regardless of flag.

The UKMTO notice said that the transit passage through the strait to or from non-Iranian destinations should not be affected by these restrictions, but UKMTO warned that vessels attempting to do so were likely to encounter a military presence.

We’ll bring you more details as they come in – stay tuned.

Here’s what we know about the blockade so far: