Trump postpones attacks on Iranian power plants by another ten days

On Thursday evening, US President Donald Trump said on the social network Truth Social that, at the request of the Iranian government, he was postponing attacks on Iranian power plants by another ten days, until Monday, April 6 at 20:00 (Tuesday, April 7 at 2:00 CEST). Talks with Tehran were continuing and progressing very well, he said, despite media reports he described as false.

The Wall Street Journal later reported, citing mediators in the peace talks, that Iran had not requested a ten-day pause in attacks on its power plants and would only submit its final response to the US 15-point plan to end the war later.

The White House chief issued his first ultimatum to Iran last Saturday. He gave the Middle Eastern country, which the US and Israel have been attacking since late February, 48 hours to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, threatening to destroy its power plants if it failed to do so. On Monday, he ordered the attacks conditionally postponed for five days, saying that Washington had held very productive talks in the preceding days on ending the war in the Middle East. Trump made the postponement of military action conditional on the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions.

On Thursday, he reiterated that the talks, mediated by Pakistan, were "going very well". However, during a cabinet meeting at the White House that day, the Republican president said he was unsure whether the United States was willing to reach a deal with Iran.

His envoy, Steve Witkoff, confirmed that the US had delivered a 15-point plan to Iran to end the fighting, which he said could provide a framework for a peace agreement. Washington would try to persuade Tehran that there was no good alternative to the proposal, Witkoff said. On Thursday, Iran said through intermediaries that the current plan put forward by the US offered no prospect of an agreement, according to media reports.

Before the war began, roughly one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed through the Strait of Hormuz. Threats and attacks on ships by Iran have cut traffic by approximately 90 percent, leading to a sharp increase in oil and gas prices. On Thursday, Trump said Iran had given Washington a "gift" by allowing ten oil tankers to pass through the waterway. He said this was a signal of goodwill towards peace negotiations.