Washington, United States – Speaking from the Oval Office on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the ceasefire between the United States and Iran is “on life support” after he formally rejected Tehran’s latest written peace proposal as a “piece of garbage” and “totally unacceptable.” Trump claimed Iranian negotiators had verbally agreed to allow the United States to remove Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium but said that provision was omitted from the final document, which he cited as a key reason for the breakdown in talks. The confrontation currently centers on what U.S. officials describe as a “double blockade” of the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran maintaining a chokehold on the vital waterway while the United States enforces a naval blockade of Iranian ports. Gulf region – The collapse of diplomacy comes amid a sharp escalation in regional hostilities, as Gulf states reported multiple drone incidents on Monday. The United Arab Emirates confirmed it had intercepted two hostile drones near strategic shipping lanes, while Qatar condemned a separate drone attack on a cargo vessel as a dangerous escalation. The standoff has contributed to what Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser called the largest energy supply shock in world history, warning investors that even a swift reopening of the Strait of Hormuz would not allow markets to rebalance until 2027. Fuel prices have surged in the United States and globally, and the tensions unfold as Trump prepares to travel to Beijing to urge Chinese President Xi Jinping to use China’s position as the primary buyer of Iranian crude to press Tehran for concessions, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that the wider conflict in the region is “not over” amid continued clashes with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon despite a separate U.S.-brokered ceasefire there.

Prepared by Lauren Mitchell and reviewed by editorial team.