Ceasefire hangs in the balance as impatient Trump awaits response from Iran

By Nic Robertson, Jessie Yeung, CNN

Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) — As the stalemate between Washington and Tehran drags on and the world waits in hope of a deal, the very real possibility of an alternate outcome – the resumption of war – looms overhead.

The clock is ticking, with Friday as the anticipated deadline for Pakistan to receive Iran’s revised peace proposal, after US President Donald Trump rejected a previous version.

Mediators in Islamabad believe a fair deal is within reach and that it is now down to Tehran to respond to it, according to sources familiar with the process. They’ve been working tirelessly to get an agreement, but as they have waited for most of this week for that reply, the US and Iran have doubled down on their threats and taunts.

As recently as Wednesday – the earliest day Tehran was expected to respond – Trump posted a mocked-up image of himself holding a gun on Truth Social, telling Iranian leaders to “get their act together.”

“No more Mr. Nice Guy,” read the caption.

Later, from the Oval Office, Trump added: “At this moment, there will never be a deal unless they agree that there will be no nuclear weapons.”

But Iran has pushed back defiantly against that key demand. In a message on state media Thursday, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said Iran would “safeguard” its nuclear and missile capabilities, and that “foreign actors” have no place in the Persian Gulf except “the depths of its waters.”

Iranians have still not seen or heard Khamenei, more than seven weeks after he was announced as their new supreme leader following the assassination of his father – but he has issued several written messages.

These back-and-forth jabs appear to put ever greater distance between the parties, nearly four weeks after the US and Iran first reached their temporary ceasefire. Late Thursday, Trump said no one knows the status of talks with Iran aside from himself and a handful of others, suggesting the negotiations are advancing despite the public appearance of a standstill.

But Iran’s nuclear capabilities clearly remain a major sticking point, with Trump demanding guarantees on curbing its nuclear program, while Tehran insists it has the right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes. It’s a critical red line for both sides, which leaves things at an impasse.

Tehran appears to be playing for time, dragging out talks about talks and sending multiple proposals with seemingly incremental movement – perhaps in the hope that Trump will eventually tire of the fight, or that domestic political pressure over soaring gas prices will force his hand.

But Trump is said to be weighing his options to force Tehran back to the negotiating table, including being briefed by military officials on a possible new round of strikes on Iran.

His current preferred strategy, though, is inflicting maximum economic pain, sources familiar with the talks told CNN. His team is preparing to extend the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, including a longer-term closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the sources said.

The US has intercepted or redirected nearly 40 ships attempting to enter or exit Iranian ports since the blockade began earlier this month – with Trump telling reporters earlier this week, “The blockade is genius.”

His administration is also pressing foreign governments to join a new coalition to support freedom of navigation in the contested waterway, as both the US and Iran maintain their respective blockades.

But the economic fallout also continues to grow, with oil prices shooting to a four-year high and gas prices in the US soaring this week as markets worry about the possible failure of peace talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The US blockade is clearly frustrating some in Tehran, with both the military headquarters and the supreme leader’s top military adviser, Moshen Rezaei, this week publicly threatening to retaliate if it continues.

On Thursday, though, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf – who is leading negotiations for Tehran and has emerged as the key voice of the Iranian government – ridiculed the notion of blockading Iran, pointing to the country’s extensive land and maritime borders.

“If you build two walls, one from NYC to the West Coast and another from LA to the East Coast, the total length will be 7,755 km, which is still about 1,000 km short of Iran’s total borders,” Ghalibaf wrote in a post on X.

He tacked on a personal jibe to the US defense secretary, writing: “P.S. For Pete Hegseth: 1 km = 0.62 mi.”

It’s not clear what will happen beyond Friday if Iran doesn’t respond favorably with a new proposal. What is for sure, however, is that both sides are primed for a potential return to battle if they can’t agree on terms for peace.

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