US, Iran leave door open to dialogue after tense Islamabad talks
After a sleepless and at times tense night in Islamabad, Iranian and U.S. officials ended their highest-level talks in decades, but 11 sources familiar with the negotiations said dialogue was still alive, Reuters reported.
The weekend meeting to resolve the conflict between the U.S. and Iran, held four days after last Tuesday's ceasefire announcement, was the first direct encounter between U.S. and Iranian officials in more than a decade and the most senior engagement since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Inside Islamabad's luxury Serena Hotel, the talks unfolded across two separate wings and one common area -- one for the U.S. side, one for the Iranians and one for trilateral meetings involving Pakistani mediators, operational staff told Reuters.
US begins blockade of Iran's ports, Tehran threatens retaliation
The U.S. military began a blockade of Iran's ports on Monday, President Donald Trump said, and Tehran threatened to retaliate against its Gulf neighbors' ports after weekend talks in Islamabad on ending the war broke down, Reuters reported.
A U.S. official said there was continued engagement with Iran, and forward motion on ‌trying to get to an agreement. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also said efforts were still under way to resolve the conflict.
But oil prices climbed back to $100 per barrel, with no sign of a swift reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to ease the biggest ever disruption in supplies and broader concerns over the durability of a two-week ceasefire agreement reached last week.
Trump says US gas prices may remain high through November midterm election
US President Donald Trump said on April 12 that the price of oil and gasoline may remain high through November’s midterm elections, a rare acknowledgement of the potential political fallout from his decision to attack Iran six weeks ago, Reuters reported.
“It could be, or the same, or maybe a little bit higher, but it should be around the same,” Mr Trump, who is in Miami for the weekend, told Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo when asked whether the cost of oil and gas would be lower by the fall.
The average price for regular gas at US service stations has exceeded US$4 (S$5) per gallon for most of April, according to data from GasBuddy. Mr Trump’s comments on April 12 came after weeks of asserting that the spike in prices is a short-term phenomenon, though his top advisers are cognisant of the war’s economic impacts, officials have said.
Iran aims to restore majority of refining capability within two months, oil ministry official says
Iran expects to restore most damaged refining and distribution facilities to 70-80 per cent of their pre-attack capacity within one to two months, a senior oil official said, as authorities work to recover from a wave of strikes on energy infrastructure, Reuters reported.
Deputy Minister of Oil Mohammad Sadeq Azimifar told the Student News Network that repair work had begun and that part of the Lavan refinery is expected to resume operations within about 10 days, with other units coming back online gradually.
