US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday that a US blockade on Iran is going global, adding Tehran had a chance to make a “good deal” with Washington.
“Our blockade is growing and going global,” Hegseth told reporters.
“No one sails from the Strait of Hormuz to anywhere in the world without the permission of the United States Navy,” he said.
Peace talks between Iran and the United States could resume soon in Pakistan, three Pakistani sources said on Friday, after the last round of talks expected earlier this week fell through. Standing next to top US General Dan Caine, Hegseth said the US was “not anxious” for a deal with Iran, and repeated Trump’s previous comments of having “all the time in the world”.
“Iran knows that they still have an open window to choose wisely … at the negotiating table. All they have to do is abandon a nuclear weapon in meaningful and verifiable ways,” he said.
Caine said the US Central Command continues to maintain a strict blockade on all ports in Iran. Thirty-four ships had been turned around as of Friday morning, he said. The US military would continue to interdict Iranian vessels in the Pacific and Indian oceans, Caine added.
