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Washington: The United States on Sunday attacked and captured an Iranian-flagged cargo ship “trying to evade its naval blockade” near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting Iran’s joint military command to warn of retaliation. It is the first incident of the vessel being stopped since the US blockade of Iranian ports began last week.

Iran’s Joint Military Command described the interception of the armed vessel as “piracy and ceasefire violation”, according to Iran’s state broadcaster. The conflict between the US and Iran over the strait has escalated and the current ceasefire is set to expire on Wednesday.

In such a situation, it is not clear whether there is any justification for President Donald Trump’s earlier announcement that US negotiators will go to Pakistan on Monday for fresh talks with Iran. Due to this uncertainty, oil prices rose again. This development threatens to deepen the existing crisis, one of the worst global energy crises in decades. Trump said on social media that a US Navy guided missile destroyer in the Gulf of Oman warned the Iranian-flagged Tuska to stop and then “punched a hole in the engine room and stopped it there.”

He said the ship, which is under US sanctions, has been taken over by US Marines and they are “looking at what’s on board.” It was not clear whether anyone was injured in the incident. US Central Command did not respond to questions but said the destroyer had issued “multiple warnings over a six-hour period”.

Iranian officials did not comment directly on Trump’s announcement about the talks, but Iranian state media, citing confidential sources, carried brief reports indicating that the talks would not take place. Minutes after the announcement of the vessel’s seizure, Iranian state media reported that Iranian President Masoud Pejeshkian spoke by phone with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday.

These reports quoted Pejeshkian as saying that US actions, including pressure and inappropriate behavior, increase the suspicion that the US will behave as before and commit “diplomatic betrayal”. In another conversation, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his Pakistani counterpart that recent US actions, rhetoric and contradictions are signs of “bad intentions and lack of seriousness towards diplomacy”, according to Iranian state media.

Pakistan did not confirm the second round of talks but security is being tightened in Islamabad. A regional official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said mediators were finalizing preparations and US advance security teams had reached the spot. The White House, the official residence and office of the US President, had said that US Vice President J.D. Vance, who led the first historic 21-hour face-to-face talks last weekend, will lead the US delegation to Pakistan. He will also be accompanied by US ambassadors Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Iran said on Saturday that it had received new proposals from America.