Iran has blamed the US for the collapse of peace talks in the Pakistani capital Islamabad. "We engaged with the US in good faith to end the war", Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a statement, quoted by TRT.
He said the US and Iran were "only inches away" from an "Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding" before they were met with "maximalism, shifting positions and blockade" by the US. "Goodwill breeds goodwill. "Hate breeds hate," Araghchi added.
The comments came shortly after the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it would begin enforcing a blockade on all maritime traffic entering and leaving Iranian ports starting Monday. The blockade excludes ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports.
The talks were part of broader efforts to end the US-Israeli war against Iran, which began on February 28 under a fragile two-week ceasefire agreed earlier.