Oil prices surged Monday as Iran suspended high-stakes U.S. negotiations over Israel’s military actions in Lebanon, while President Donald Trump downplayed the crisis during a CNBC interview. The suspension, reported by Iranian state media, comes amid escalating tensions in the Middle East and threats to block key waterways, including the Strait of Hormuz. Markets reacted cautiously, with U.S. stocks near record levels despite rising crude prices.
Iran Halts U.S. Talks Over Israeli Attacks in Lebanon
Iran suspended diplomatic talks with the United States on Monday, citing Israel’s expanding military operations in Lebanon, according to government-aligned media. The move complicates efforts to end a three-month-long conflict, with Tehran accusing the U.S. of failing to uphold a ceasefire. “The Iranian negotiating team will suspend ‘talks and the exchange of texts through mediators,’” reported the semiofficial news agency Tasnim, which cited the foreign ministry’s statement that the U.S. “bears direct responsibility” for violations of the truce against Iran and Israel’s attacks on Lebanon. NBC News confirmed the statement, citing a senior Iranian official who declined to be named.
For more on this story, see Iran halts U.S. talks, threatens full Hormuz blockade amid oil price surge.
The suspension follows weeks of cross-border clashes, including Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon that killed at least 12 people, according to local authorities in the region. The Lebanese Red Cross reported treating over 50 injured in the attacks, which targeted infrastructure and residential areas. Iran’s foreign ministry framed the decision as a response to what it called “the Zionist regime’s” aggression, a term it frequently uses to describe Israel. The ministry also accused the U.S. of “arming and backing the aggressor,” a claim echoed by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a speech on Monday, where he vowed to “defend the oppressed” in the region.
The move also comes as Tehran threatens to close the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route for global oil, and target the Bab el-Mandeb strait, which handles 14% of global maritime trade. Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander Major General Hossein Salami warned during a press conference on Sunday that “the Strait of Hormuz will be a graveyard for enemy ships” if Israel or its allies escalate hostilities. The IRGC has previously conducted military drills near the strait, according to Reuters, which cited a defense analyst noting the exercises “signal a readiness to act.”
U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller addressed the suspension in a press briefing on Monday, stating, “We remain committed to de-escalation and regional stability. We urge all parties to refrain from actions that could provoke further conflict.” However, the statement did not address Iran’s accusation that the U.S. has failed to uphold the ceasefire, a point emphasized by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in a tweet on Monday: “The U.S. is the architect of the current crisis.”
Trump Dismisses Negotiations, Defends U.S. Strategy
President Donald Trump, during a live interview with CNBC
