President Donald Trump said Tuesday evening he was pausing the U.S. operation to guide stranded vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz, allowing time for what he described as a potential deal to end the Iran war. The announcement came as Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, held talks in Beijing with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, according to the official Xinhua news agency—his first visit to China since the conflict erupted.
In a social media post, Trump said the pause was based on “the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran.” The White House offered no further details on the status of negotiations, which had appeared largely stalled since the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28.
The U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports, in place since April 13, remains in effect, denying Tehran oil revenue and pressing its disputed nuclear program. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that for peace to be achieved, Iran must agree to Trump’s demands on its nuclear program and reopen the strait. “We would prefer the path of peace,” Rubio said.
The day-old U.S. push to clear a lane through the strait had aimed to rescue thousands of civilian sailors stranded by the war. Rubio described the operation as defensive, saying, “They’re sitting ducks, they’re isolated, they’re starving, they’re vulnerable. At least 10 sailors have already died as a result.” The U.S. military said it had sunk six small Iranian boats that threatened commercial ships on Monday, but only two U.S.-flagged merchant vessels are known to have passed through the new route. Major shipping lines, including Hapag-Lloyd, said the strait remained too dangerous for transit.
The United Arab Emirates, a key U.S. ally, reported a second day of drone and missile attacks from Iran on Tuesday, though Emirati officials said there were no casualties. A day earlier, Emirati air defenses had engaged 15 missiles and four drones, one of which ignited a fire at a key oil facility, wounding three Indian nationals. Iran denied striking the UAE “in recent days,” according to a spokesman for its joint military command, Ebrahim Zolfaghari, in a statement read on state TV.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Iran’s renewed attacks had not crossed the threshold of “major combat operations.” Caine said Tuesday was a “quieter” day in the strait. Rubio insisted that U.S. forces would not fire unless fired upon. “We’re not attacking them,” he said.
Iran’s parliament speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, signaled that Tehran had yet to fully respond to the U.S. effort. “We know full well that the continuation of the status quo is intolerable for America; while we have not even begun yet,” he wrote on X. His statement did not acknowledge any negotiations, which are now conducted via messages passed through Pakistan.
An Iranian military commander, disputing Washington’s claim of sinking six Iranian boats, said two small civilian cargo boats were hit Monday, killing five civilians, Iran’s state TV reported.
The nearly month-old ceasefire, brokered on April 8, has been tested daily. The U.S. has cited it to argue that the president is not required to seek formal congressional approval for war activities under the War Powers Resolution. More than 100 U.S. military aircraft are patrolling the skies above the strait, Caine said, while hundreds of merchant ships remain bottled up in the Persian Gulf, unable to transit the 21-mile-wide waterway without risking attack.