With only days remaining until a fragile ceasefire expires, President Donald Trump on Sunday threatened critical Iranian infrastructure if the Middle Eastern country doesn’t agree to a U.S. deal, but said negotiators are returning to Pakistan for another round of talks.
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”
Trump also accused Iran of committing a “total violation” of the ceasefire for firing on ships near the Strait of Hormuz. At the end of his message, the president added: “IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!”
Vice President JD Vance, envoy Steve Witkoff, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will attend Monday conversations in Islamabad, a White House official told USA TODAY. So far, talks have focused on fully reopening the strait, a move critical for global oil transport, and barring Iran’s access to nuclear weapons.
James Powel
Trump said in a Truth Social post that U.S. forces damaged and seized the Iranian ship Touska as it attempted to break the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, saying that the U.S. has “full custody” of the ship.
“The Iranian crew refused to listen, so our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom (sic),” Trump wrote. He added that the ship was sanctioned for what he called a “prior history of illegal activity.”
There was no immediate public comment from Iran as of just before 4 p.m. ET.
Kathryn Palmer
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a statement that he spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian amid uncertainty over possible negotiations to end the war.
Sharif shared on social media on Sunday that the discussion centered on “the evolving regional situation.”
“Pakistan remains fully committed to its role as an honest and sincere facilitator of lasting peace and regional stability,” Sharif said.
Despite President Donald Trump saying earlier in the day that the United States and Iran will return to Islamabad to begin a second round of peace negotiations after a failed attempt last weekend, it’s unclear whether Iranians will attend. Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported the regime rejected new peace talks but cited no specific source.
A White House official told USA TODAY Vice President JD Vance, envoy Steve Witkoff, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to represent the United States.
Kathryn Palmer
Amid rising discontent over the economy and the Iran war, President Donald Trump’s second term approval rating reached a new low in a survey that could be a significant warning for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections.
The NBC News Decision Desk poll, released Sunday, found that 63% of adults disapprove of Trump’s performance as president. That’s his lowest mark from the outlet since he retook office in January 2025. Another 37% of adults said they approve of Trump.
The downturn in the president’s job approval is largely attributable to souring opinions about the state of the nation’s economy and the progression of the United States’ joint war on Iran, according to the outlet.
Read more about the polling here.
Kathryn Palmer
Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in an interview on Sunday that gas prices might not drop below $3 until next year, as Americans head into the summer travel season clouded by energy price spikes.
The average national gas price was $4.04 per gallon on April 19, according to AAA’s fuel tracker. It was $2.98 on Feb. 26, two days before the war started.
When asked by CNN’s Jake Tapper if it’s “realistic” for Americans to expect gas prices to drop below $3 per gallon, Wright said, “I don’t know.”
“That could happen later this year,” he continued. “That might not happen until next year.”
Administration officials for weeks have promised a drop in prices when the war with Iran ends, but the conflict is approaching the two-month mark.
Francesca Chambers
American negotiators are expected to head to the Middle Eastern country on Monday for talks, including Vice President JD Vance, envoy Steve Witkoff, and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, a White House official told USA TODAY.
There is currently no decision by Iran to send a negotiating delegation to Pakistan “as long as there is a naval blockade” impacting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday. The outlet is closely affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards.
Contributing: Reuters
Kathryn Palmer
During a mass held in the Angolan city of Kilamba on Sunday, Pope Leo praised the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, as a feud simmers between the Catholic leader and U.S. president over the Iran war.
Leo told the crowd gathered in the southern African nation that the temporary pause in fighting between Israeli forces and Iran-backed group Hezbollah in Lebanon is a “reason for hope.”
The American-born pope is in the middle of a four-nation Africa tour. He has been an outspoken critic of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran over the past several weeks, which has repeatedly caught the ire of President Donald Trump.
Kathryn Palmer
The Strait of Hormuz remained closed to marine traffic early Sunday, after a brief reprieve over the weekend in which both U.S. and Iranian leaders declared the critical oil thoroughfare open.
Iran’s armed forces turned back two tankers attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz after issuing warnings, Reuters reported, citing Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency. The outlet attributed the move to the continuing U.S. maritime blockade on Iran.
The strait’s closure comes after a dramatic back-and-forth over its fate. Trump on Friday declared the fight with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz “over,” saying in a phone interview with USA TODAY that the deal reached was “a great victory.”
That prompted Iranian leader Mohammad B. Ghalibaf to slam the president’s comments as false, saying the strait remains closed to vessels not authorized by the Iranian military as long as the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports continues.
Ship tracking website MarineTraffic appears to show no vessels currently crossing the strait early Sunday.