Iran…Trump…Evening…4/20/2026….Stalemate…..

Vice President JD Vance is expected to leave Washington for Islamabad on Tuesday, according to two U.S. officials, and two Iranian officials said that Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the influential political and military figure who represented Iran at the last round of talks, would attend if Mr. Vance also did.

The new round of talks had been in doubt as the countries’ two-week cease-fire neared its expiration. In one sign of the talks’ likelihood, Pakistan’s government said it was deploying thousands of security personnel to ensure negotiators’ safety.

President Trump and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, publicly reiterated their hardened stances. Mr. Pezeshkian, Iran’s president, noted on social media the “deep historical mistrust” between Iran and the United States, and warned that Americans “seek Iran’s surrender. Iranians do not submit to force.” Hours earlier Mr. Trump had repeated his threats to target Iranian power plants and civilian infrastructure if no deal was reached.

Here’s what else we are covering:

• Iranian-flagged ship: The Touska, a container ship seized by U.S. forces in the Arabian Sea on Sunday, was sanctioned by the Treasury in 2020, during President Trump’s first term. A U.S. military official said Monday that a team of Marines was searching as many as 5,000 containers aboard the Touska.

• Lebanon: The State Department will host another round of ambassador-level talks in Washington between Israel and Lebanon on Thursday, the department said. Israel wants the disarmament of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group. Lebanon wants a complete Israeli withdrawal from its south…

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The Guardian….

• Donald Trump has given mixed messages on the way forward in the war against Iran, saying he’s in no rush to end the conflict while also saying a deal with Iran could happen “relatively quickly” and expressing optimism that fresh talks with Tehran will soon take place in Pakistan.

• Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Iran would not accept negotiations with the US while under threat. He also said on X that Iran had “prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield”.

• US vice-president JD Vance remained in the US on Monday, a source told Reuters, denying reports he was already on his way to Pakistan, in comments adding to the uncertainty over whether a second round of talks will proceed.

• US Central Command said 27 vessels had been forced to turn around or return to Iranian ports under the current naval blockade of the strait of Hormuz.

• Oil prices rose on Monday amid the high tensions between the US and Iran, though the market reaction remained more tame than during earlier stages of the war. Brent crude – the global oil benchmark – rose 5.6% to settle at $95.48 a barrel. US stocks edged down, with the S&P 500 closing 0.2% lower on Monday.

• UK foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said a “critical” moment was coming with the looming the expiry of the 14-day US-Iran truce and reiterated the Hormuz’s strait closure was “hitting the global economy”, amid an international push to reopen the waterway.

• The toll of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza on Monday has risen to at least five, according to Palestinian health officials, while witnesses said Hamas fighters clashed with gunmen from an Israeli-backed militia.

• Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi and Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the war in Iran by phone on Monday. Lavrov reportedly reiterated the need to uphold the ceasefire and continue diplomatic efforts, while Araghchi said Tehran would to try to ensure the uninterrupted passage of Russian ships and cargo through the Hormuz strait…

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ISW…Iran Update Special Report, April 20, 2026

1. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf appears to be engaged in a serious intra-regime debate with Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Commander Major General Ahmad Vahidi and other senior regime officials opposed to negotiations with the United States.
2. Vahidi appears to have the upper hand over Ghalibaf at the moment. Vahidi is reportedly the only Iranian official with direct access to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and is serving as a conduit for relaying key decisions to other regime officials, according to Israeli media on April 19.
3. US and Iranian delegations will reportedly meet in Islamabad, Pakistan, for a second round of talks in the coming days. US and Iranian demands appear to have largely stayed the same, however.
4. The US Navy continued to enforce its blockade of Iranian ports, directing 27 vessels to change course since the start of the blockade. US forces likely forced two Iranian-linked vessels attempting to violate the Navy’s blockade to turn around.
5. The Khatam ol Anbia Central Headquarters claimed that the April 19 seizure of the Iranian-flagged, US-sanctioned Touska by the US Navy violated the US-Iran ceasefire. Unspecified security sources told Reuters that the Touska was likely transporting dual-use items from China to Iran.
6. The Iranian Parliament is attempting to formalize Iranian “control” over the Strait of Hormuz by drafting a bill that would ban Israeli-linked vessels from transiting the Strait of Hormuz, require vessels from “hostile countries” to obtain approval from Iran’s Supreme National Security Council to transit the strait, and bar states that “caused damage” to Iran from transiting the strait until they paid reparations to Iran.