Live Updates: Trump threatens Iran strikes, says too soon for new direct talks after reporting "great progress"

President Trump told the New York Post on Wednesday morning that it was "too soon" to start thinking about a second round of face-to-face peace talks between the U.S. and Iran, the newspaper reported as Mr. Trump threatened Iran with "higher level and intensity" strikes if it declines to agree to a peace deal.

Mr. Trump had said Tuesday night that he was pausing a U.S. operation to guide commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz to make room for diplomacy, saying there had been "great progress" in negotiations, without offering any details of the talks.

Asked whether The Post should prepare to send a reporter back to Pakistan for a new round of negotiations, after sources in Islamabad told some news outlets that the two sides were close to agreeing on a preliminary deal to end the war, Mr. Trump said, "I don't think so," according to the newspaper.

President Trump threatened Iran on Wednesday with new attacks, warning they would be at a "higher level and intensity" than previous rounds of bombing, if it declined to agree to a peace deal, which he said was "perhaps, a big assumption."

His latest remarks, in a Truth Social post, came 13 hours after he said in a previous post that he was pausing Project Freedom, a U.S. military operation to guide vessels through the Strait of Hormuz that lasted one day and drew a violent reaction by Iran, to see if a peace deal could be reached amid "great progress" in negotiations.

"Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran," Mr. Trump said Wednesday. "If they don't agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before."

Mr. Trump has not given any indication what Iran purportedly agreed to to end the more than two-month war and standoff over control of the strait, a vital shipping lane which has been gridlocked since the conflict began, sending global energy prices soaring.

Iran has not reacted publicly to any of Mr. Trump's latest remarks.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday night that Operation Epic Fury was already over, noting that President Trump had previously "notified Congress, we're done with that stage of it."

"The operation, Epic Fury, is concluded," Rubio said. "We achieved the objectives of that operation."

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement Wednesday thanking captains and shipowners in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman "for complying with Iran's Strait of Hormuz regulations and contributing to regional maritime security."

The U.S. military and Iran have both claimed for weeks to be in control of the vital shipping lanes of the strait. 

The U.S. launched an operation, Project Freedom, on Monday to guide ships through the strait in defiance of Iran's demands for vessels to coordinate with its military, but after just a day and two ships being led through the waterway, President Trump announced a pause in the mission Tuesday night.

He said the pause was to see if a peace deal could be nailed down with Tehran amid "great progress" in negotiations. 

It came after Iran reacted to Project Freedom on Monday by attacking several ships in the strait and launching missiles and drones at U.S. ally the United Arab Emirates for the first time since Mr. Trump announced a ceasefire with Tehran on April 8.

In its statement Wednesday, published on its social media accounts, the IRGC said with U.S. "threats neutralized and new protocols in place, safe, stable passage through SOH [Strait of Hormuz] will be ensured."

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement Wednesday thanking captains and shipowners in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman "for complying with Iran's Strait of Hormuz regulations and contributing to regional maritime security."

The U.S. military and Iran have both claimed for weeks to be in control of the vital shipping lanes of the strait. 

The U.S. launched an operation, Project Freedom, on Monday to guide ships through the strait in defiance of Iran's demands for vessels to coordinate with its military, but after just a day and two ships being led through the waterway, President Trump announced a pause in the mission Tuesday night.

He said the pause was to see if a peace deal could be nailed down with Tehran amid "great progress" in negotiations. 

It came after Iran reacted to Project Freedom on Monday by attacking several ships in the strait and launching missiles and drones at U.S. ally the United Arab Emirates for the first time since Mr. Trump announced a ceasefire with Tehran on April 8.

In its statement Wednesday, published on its social media accounts, the IRGC said with U.S. "threats neutralized and new protocols in place, safe, stable passage through SOH [Strait of Hormuz] will be ensured."

Israel's military said Wednesday that two soldiers were "moderately and lightly injured" in a Hezbollah drone and rocket attack on forces taking part in the ongoing invasion of southern Lebanon.

The Israel Defense Forces said in its statement that the Air Force had "intercepted a hostile aircraft prior to crossing into Israeli territory" in a separate incident.

Shortly after, the IDF said it had launched new strikes on "Hezbollah terror infrastructure sites in several areas in southern Lebanon."

In a statement posted on social media, Iranian-backed Hezbollah confirmed that it had attacked Israeli soldiers in two locations in southern Lebanon, claiming it was "in defense of Lebanon and its people," and in response to what it described as Israeli violations of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon and attacks on villages in the south that it said had caused civilian deaths and injuries.

Israel and Hezbollah have continued exchanging regular fire since President Trump first announced the ceasefire in Lebanon, both always claiming to act in self defense and accusing the other of violating the truce.

The ongoing fighting in Lebanon has remained a major complicating factor in efforts by Pakistan to broker a diplomatic end of the war between the U.S. and Iran. Tehran has thus far refused to agree to any wider peace deal that doesn't include a halt to Israel's fight with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane for energy supplies long kept completely open under international law, will be controlled in the future under a new system that "will likely reflect a new balance of power and security considerations" in the region, with bordering states Iran and Oman playing a central role, Iranian state news agency IRNA claimed Wednesday. 

The report said Iranian and Omani officials had previously discussed potential joint mechanisms to manage maritime traffic, ensure safe passage, and introduce coordinated protocols for vessel movement once conditions in the region "stabilize."

IRNA said the proposals were framed as efforts to improve security and organization for shipping traffic in the strait, rather than to restrict navigation that had, until the U.S. and Israel launched their joint war on Iran on Feb. 28, been completely free and unfettered.

The article said Iran considers the Strait of Hormuz strategically linked to its national security, and that any long-term governance or operational structure for the waterway should be determined through regional dialogue, particularly with neighboring coastal states.

IRNA said recent developments had underscored the geopolitical importance of the strait, noting the severe global energy price hikes amid constraints on commercial traffic through the waterway during the war.

The U.S. and its regional allies in the Persian Gulf have accused Iran of piracy for its attacks on and threats against commercial vessels, which have gridlocked traffic in the strait. 

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif lauded President Trump on Wednesday for pausing Project Freedom, saying the halt to the brief U.S. military operation to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz — which prompted Iran to attack ships and Gulf States for the first time in weeks — would "go a long way towards advancing regional peace, stability and reconciliation."

"We are very hopeful that the current momentum will lead to a lasting agreement that secures durable peace and stability for the region and beyond," said Sharif, whose country has served as an intermediary between Tehran and Washington, in a social media post. 

"I am grateful to President Donald Trump for his courageous leadership and timely announcement regarding the pause in Project Freedom in the Strait of Hormuz," said the Pakistani leader, adding that his country "remains firmly committed to supporting all efforts that promote restraint and a peaceful resolution of conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy."

Mr. Trump said Tuesday evening, when he announced the pause in Project Freedom, that he was doing so after "great progress" in negotiations "toward a Complete and Final Agreement" to end the war with Iran.

Iran's government has yet to react publicly to Mr. Trump's announcement.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday told his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi that China was "deeply distressed" over the war that has lasted more than two months and said a "comprehensive ceasefire" was needed.

Wang met Araghchi in Beijing, the first time the Iranian foreign minister traveled to China since the war with the U.S. and Israel started Feb. 28.

"We believe that a comprehensive ceasefire is urgently needed, that a resumption of hostilities is not acceptable, and that it is particularly important to remain committed to dialogue and negotiations," Wang said. 

After their meeting, Araghchi said Tehran would only accept "a fair and comprehensive agreement" to end the war, according to Iranian state media.

"We will do our best to protect our legitimate rights and interests in the negotiations," he was quoted as saying, without addressing President Trump's announcement on Tuesday that he was pausing Operation Freedom in the Strait of Hormuz "for a short period of time."

Mr. Trump said he was pausing the U.S. military operation to guide ships through the strait a day after it began to see whether a comprehensive peace deal could be agreed with Tehran, citing what he said had been "great progress" in negotiations brokered by Pakistan. 

The operation infuriated Tehran, drawing the first Iranian attacks on ships in the strait, and on the United Arab Emirates, since the U.S.-Iran ceasefire began in early April.

CBS/AP

President Trump said Tuesday on social media that Project Freedom will be paused as the U.S. and Iran make "Great Progress" toward a final agreement, but said the U.S. blockade would remain in place.

"Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed," Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Project Freedom, the U.S. military's effort to help move ships through the Strait of Hormuz, began Monday.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Tuesday there are more than 1,500 vessels with about 22,500 mariners trapped inside the Persian Gulf.

The United States and its Gulf allies have proposed a United Nations resolution threatening Iran with sanctions or other measures if it doesn't halt attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, stop imposing "illegal tolls," and start disclosing the placement of all mines to allow freedom of navigation.

The draft Security Council resolution, obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, also demands that Iran "immediately participate in and enable" U.N. efforts to establish a humanitarian corridor in the strait for the delivery of vital aid, fertilizer and other goods.

It is the latest diplomatic effort by the U.S. and its Gulf allies after a watered-down resolution aimed at opening the strait was vetoed by China and Russia hours before Washington and Tehran announced a temporary ceasefire in early April.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a statement on Tuesday accused Iran of continuing "to hold the world's economy hostage" by trying to close the strait, threatening to attack ships, laying sea mines, and attempting to charge tolls "for the world's most important waterway."

Whether the resolution succeeds will be "a real test" for the U.N. "as something that functions, that can solve global problems," Rubio added at the White House briefing.

During his press briefing with reporters, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Operation Epic Fury is over.

"The operation is over," Rubio said. "Epic Fury is, the president notified Congress, we're done with that stage of it. OK? We're now onto this project of freedom."

Project Freedom is a U.S. effort to help commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

"The operation, Epic Fury, is concluded," Rubio also said. "We achieved the objectives of that operation."

Rubio said the issue of Iran's enriched uranium is being addressed in negotiations, although he didn't go into where negotiations stand.