Washington: President Donald Trump on Sunday said the US Navy would “immediately” begin a blockade to stop ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, after US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan ended without an agreement.Trump sought to exert strategic control over the waterway responsible for the transportation of 20 per cent of global oil supplies before the war, hoping to take away Iran’s key source of economic leverage in the fighting.The president added that he has “instructed our Navy to seek and interdict every vessel in International Waters that has paid a toll to Iran. No one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas.”Trump also said the US was ready to “finish up” Iran at the “appropriate moment,” stressing that Tehran’s nuclear ambitions were at the core of the failure to end the war. APIran war has cost Israel at least $11.5 billion, Finance Ministry saysApril 12, 2026 10:53 pmWashington: Israel’s Ministry of Finance released its initial estimate of the cost of the Iran war on Sunday. Some NIS 22 billion ($7.25 billion) has been spent on defence and military costs, including equipment and mobilising more than 100,000 reserve soldiers, the ministry said. Another NIS 12 billion ($4 billion) accounts for damages incurred by businesses and individuals from missiles or other related war losses, including missed days of work. The ministry noted that some of the costs – including economic losses stemming from the war’s 40-day closure of the airports and many businesses – will only become apparent in the future. APEgypt’s foreign minister speaks with senior Pakistani diplomat and US envoyApril 12, 2026 10:53 pmWashington: In the call with US envoy Steve Witkoff, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty affirmed “the importance of adhering to the diplomatic path and prioritising dialogue and peaceful solutions” to settle all disputes. Abdelatty and his Pakistani counterpart, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, affirmed that they will continue their efforts to de-escalate and bridge the gaps between the US and Iran. Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey have been mediating between the US and Iran since the start of the war. APIran’s president says his country is prepared to reach balanced and fair’ agreementApril 12, 2026 10:52 pmWashington: President Masoud Pezeshkian told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday that his country is prepared to reach a deal that would ensure “lasting regional peace”. Pezeshkian added that Iran’s national interests are a red line, according to a readout of the call carried by Iran’s state-media. He criticised the US use of bases in Gulf countries to carry out strikes against Iran, while maintaining that Gulf countries are “brothers” and that Tehran is willing to cooperate with them to achieve regional security “without outside powers”. Iran has said it has repeatedly struck US facilities in neighbouring Gulf countries since the war started in late February. Gulf countries say Iran has also targeted civilian infrastructure and facilities. APTrump threatens China with 50% tariffs if it sends arms to IranApril 12, 2026 9:28 pmWashington: The US president said his threat to impose 50% tariffs on goods from countries that sold weapons to Iran was aimed at China. Trump told Fox News’ ‘Sunday Morning Futures’ that he has heard reports of China giving anti-aircraft “shoulder missiles” to Iran. He played down the possibility of China supplying weapons to Iran, but said their goods would be taxed if they did. “I doubt they would do that, because I have a relationship, and I think they wouldn’t do that, but maybe they did a little bit at the beginning,” Trump said. “But if we catch them doing that, they get a 50% tariff.” APTrump: Gulf allies have already started helping us in Strait of HormuzApril 12, 2026 8:02 pmTrump: Gulf allies have already started helping us in Strait of Hormuz. ReutersIranian delegation leaves Islamabad after talks with US failedApril 12, 2026 12:56 pmIran’s state-run TV on Sunday said the delegation left Pakistan’s capital after talks with the US failed to reach a deal. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said that negotiations with the US fell apart over a “gap between our opinions over two or three important issues.”Talks ended without deal due to ‘excessive demands’ made by US: IranApril 12, 2026 12:19 pmThe talks between Iran and the US in Pakistan have ended without a deal due to “excessive demands” made by the American side, a top Iranian official said on Sunday. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei, however, emphasised that “diplomacy never ends.”US Vice President Vance leaves Pakistan after impasse in negotiations with IranApril 12, 2026 12:15 pmUS Vice President JD Vance boarded his government plane at 7:08 am local time in Islamabad, planning to depart Pakistan after he said that Iran declined to back down on developing a nuclear weapon. That’s according to a reporter travelling with Vance.Iran-US talks in Islamabad held via indirect, direct channels: sourcesApril 12, 2026 12:14 pmThe Iran-US peace talks were conducted first indirectly through Pakistan and later through direct negotiations between the two sides, official sources said on Sunday. Pakistan remained involved at every stage of the process, with the talks beginning with separate meetings of the US and Iranian delegations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday. This was followed by an exchange of messages between the two sides through Pakistani interlocutors, the sources said.Iran says talks marked by ‘mistrust, suspicion’; breakthrough wasn’t expected in single roundApril 12, 2026 11:09 amAcknowledging the absence of a breakthrough in the latest round of negotiations with the United States, Iran on Sunday said the talks were held in an atmosphere of “mistrust and suspicion,” with no realistic expectation of reaching a comprehensive agreement in a single session.Tankers exit Gulf via Strait of HormuzApril 12, 2026 10:44 amThree supertankers fully laden with oil passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, shipping data showed, in what appeared to be the first vessels to exit the Gulf since the US-Iran ceasefire deal. Tehran’s blockade of the strait, a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, has disrupted global energy supplies and sent oil prices soaring since the start of the Iran war at the end of February. The Liberia-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Serifos and China-flagged VLCCs Cospearl Lake and He Rong Hai, entered and exited the “Hormuz Passage trial anchorage” that bypasses Iran’s Larak Island on Saturday, LSEG data showed. Each vessel is capable of carrying 2 million barrels of oil.Iran war diverts US military, attention from Asia ahead of Trump’s summit with China’s leaderApril 12, 2026 10:15 amIn 2011, President Barack Obama declared it was time for America to leave behind the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and “pivot” to Asia to counter the rise of China. Fifteen years later, the US finds itself still at war in the Middle East and has pulled military assets from the Asia-Pacific as it aims to eliminate the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear and missile programs. The demands of the Iran war also caused President Donald Trump to delay by several weeks his highly anticipated trip to China, deepening worries that the US is once again getting distracted at the cost of its strategic interests in Asia, where Beijing seeks to unseat the US as the regional leader. Those skeptical of the US involvement in the Middle East say the war is preventing Trump from adequately preparing for his summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping next month, when economic interests are on the line, and they warn that a failure to focus on Asia and maintain strong deterrence could lead to greater instability, if China should believe the time is ripe to seize the self-governed island of Taiwan.Pakistan urges US, Iran to uphold ceasefire after talks end without breakthroughApril 12, 2026 10:15 amAs high-stakes negotiations between the United States and Iran concluded in Islamabad without a breakthrough, Pakistan on Sunday called on both sides to continue to honour their ceasefire commitments and sustain diplomatic engagement. In a statement at the close of the talks, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Islamabad remained hopeful that the negotiations, despite failing to yield an agreement, had created momentum for continued dialogue. Dar expressed gratitude to both Washington and Tehran for responding to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s call for an immediate ceasefire and for accepting Pakistan’s invitation to hold peace talks in the capital.Vance spoke to Trump ‘dozen times’ during high-stakes US-Iran talksApril 12, 2026 10:14 amUS Vice-President JD Vance on Sunday said he remained in constant touch with President Donald Trump throughout the high-stakes negotiations with Iran, revealing the intensity and real-time coordination behind Washington’s diplomatic push. Responding to a question on the frequency of his communication with Trump, Vance said the engagement was continuous during the nearly day-long talks. “We were talking to the President consistently. I don’t know the exact number—perhaps half a dozen times, maybe a dozen over the past 21 hours,” he said.Iran denies claims that US vessels entered Strait of HormuzApril 12, 2026 8:59 amA spokesperson for Iran’s joint military command has denied an earlier claim by the US that two Navy destroyers transited the Strait of Hormuz, adding that “initiative over the passage of any vessel rests with the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, according to Iran’s state-media. Earlier, the US military said two destroyers transited the Iran-gripped waterway ahead of mine-clearing work, a first since the war began. Iran’s state media, however, said Iran forced a US military ship that was attempting to cross the strait to turn around.Talks with Iran ended after 21 hours without reaching agreement, says US Vice President VanceApril 12, 2026 8:07 amUS Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday that the Islamabad Talks with Iran failed as the two sides could not bridge the gulf of differences despite hectic efforts spreading more than 21 hours.Starit of HormuzApril 12, 2026 8:05 amAs the talks started, the US military said it was “setting the conditions” to start clearing the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz is central to the ceasefire talks. The U.S. military said two of its warships had passed through the strait and conditions were being set to clear mines, while Iran’s state media denied any U.S. ships had transited the waterway.