The ‘Al-Riqqa’ oil tanker (L) and ‘Al-Yarmouk’ oil tankers sail in the Arabian Gulf waters, off the coast of Kuwait City on June 27, 2026. (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT / AFP via Getty Images) /
Yasser Al-zayyat | Afp | Getty Images
Talks to end the U.S. war with Iran are on hold after the U.S. struck Iranian military targets in retaliation for Tehran’s latest strikes on shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
A Pakistani source involved in the negotiations to settle the conflict between the U.S. and Iran told MS NOW that while the talks are now on hold, all sides are maintaining representatives in Switzerland to restart discussions when given the go-ahead.
The source did not make clear to MS NOW which side decided to pause negotiations.
A senior Trump administration official, however, said the talks had not been called off.
“Nothing has been cancelled,” the official said in a statement to MS NOW. “Technical talks regarding the implementation of [memorandum of understanding] are on track for the coming days as planned.”
The diplomatic freeze comes after the exchange of fire prompted U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday to again threaten Iran with annihilation following U.S. attacks on Iranian military targets in retaliation for Tehran’s latest strikes on shipping in the strategically vital waterway.
Iran’s neighbors, Kuwait and Bahrain, reported incoming missiles and drones overnight.
“United States aircraft just struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN!,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The U.S. military attacked a number of Iranian targets after a commercial tanker in the Strait of Hormuz was reported to have been struck by a projectile on Saturday.
U.S. Central Command said early Sunday that fighter jets struck 10 Iranian military targets in and near the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for a drone strike on the Panamanian-flagged tanker, the M/T Kiku. The ship was transiting the strait with more than two million barrels of crude oil, CentCom said late Saturday.
“There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” Trump wrote.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to send Iran back to the “stone age.”
In an April Truth Social post, Trump threatened “a whole civilization will die tonight” and raised the specter of nuclear war. “For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them,” Trump said in a post in May.
Kuwait and Bahrain under attack
Iran said it struck U.S. military targets in Kuwait and Bahrain early Sunday following U.S. strikes on its coastal facilities.
Kuwait’s army said its air defenses were “confronting hostile missile and drone attacks.”
Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned “the renewed Iranian aggression against its territory, targeting it again with a number of ballistic missiles and drones, in a dangerous escalation.”
“What Tehran is doing is not a passing act, nor an isolated incident, but rather a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated aggression,” Bahrain’s statement added.
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar — which have both been repeatedly struck by Iranian projectiles — condemned Iran’s attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait, describing them as violations of those countries’ sovereignty and international law. Saudi Arabia also denounced Iran’s attacks, “as well as against the security and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Despite the barrage of attacks, Central Command said commercial vessel transits through the critical waterway continue.
Oil prices extended declines on Friday as more tankers exited the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns.
International benchmark Brent crude futures for August settled down 4.34% at $71.99 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures for August declined 3.74% to end at $69.23 a barrel. The last time WTI futures closed below $70 was on Feb. 27 — the day before the start of the Iran war.
CentCom said the U.S. attacks targeted Iranian “military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defense sites, drone storage facilities, and minelayer capabilities.”
Escalation amid negotiation
The fresh attacks come as the U.S. and Iran are supposed to be engaging in a 60-day ceasefire as they hold talks to end their war. But both have accused the other of violating their end of the agreement.
The U.S. military struck Iran on Friday after Trump accused the Islamic Republic of “foolish violation” of a ceasefire agreement by launching drone attacks at ships in the strait.
Iran on Thursday struck the Singapore-flagged cargo ship Ever Lovely in the strait off the coast of Oman, Central Command said in a post on X. The vessel continued on its way through the strait, a major thoroughfare for oil shipments.
The renewed attacks come more than a week after Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at developing a permanent peace deal to end the war between their two nations.
— CNBC’s Sarah Min, Terri Cullen and Dan Mangan contributed to this report
