Donald Trump has shown no sign of approving a peace deal with Iran despite saying on Friday that he would make a ‘final determination’, ITV News Correspondent Sejal Karia explains.

The US military stopped a merchant vessel trying to break through its blockade of Iranian ports by firing a missile into its engine room. The Gambia-flagged cargo ship Lian Star ignored more than 20 warnings from American forces overnight as it tried to enter an Iranian port, the US Central Command said.

The ship remained adrift in the Gulf of Oman and US forces have not boarded it, a US official with knowledge of the situation said.

It means the US has now stopped six ships trying to breach the blockade, imposed on April 17. One has been allowed to proceed and another 116 ships have been redirected, the military has said.

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The blockade was launched in response to Iran effectively closing the crucial Strait of Hormuz shipping channel, after the US and Israel launched strikes on the Islamic Republic on February 28,

A fragile ceasefire has held since April 7, and now world awaits word on whether a deal is being reached to extend it by 60 days while new talks would be held on Iran’s disputed nuclear program.

Any deal with Iran will be a “good deal” the US defence secretary said on Saturday after Donald Trump left a two-hour situation room meeting with his advisers, without a final decision.

Pete Hegseth told an international forum on Saturday that Trump was being patient in making sure any peace pact with Iran would ensure that any agreement prevents Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Hegseth said: “I had a chance to talk to President Trump this morning. He wanted me to reiterate how patient he is in ensuring that with America undertaking this kind of historic endeavour, any deal will be a good one, a great one, and he’s patient in the pursuit of that.”

“If Iran doesn’t want to make a great deal that ensures they don’t get a nuclear weapon,” then Iran can “deal with” the US military, Hegseth said.

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Hegseth said American forces are fully prepared to resume military action if so ordered, and that weapons stockpiles are enough to get the job done.

The US president held high-level talks on Friday but has not yet made a decision on whether to support an extension of the ceasefire with Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Washington officials claimed on Thursday that the US and Iran had reached a tentative agreement to extend the ceasefire. Iran said the agreement has not been finalised.

Ahead of Friday’s meeting, Trump said he was looking to make a “final determination.” A senior administration official later said the roughly two-hour meeting with national security aides had concluded without a decision.

Trump wrote on social media that “Iran must agree that they will never have a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb.” He said the strait must be reopened for international navigation and all sea mines destroyed.

Iran’s main negotiator said on Friday that it has “no trust in guarantees or words,” only actions, underscoring lingering distrust after the US and Israel have twice attacked Iran over the past year while it was engaged in nuclear negotiations.

“No step will be taken before the other side acts,” Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote on X. “We do not gain concessions through talks, but through missiles.”

The developments came as the fragile seven-week ceasefire between the US and Iran showed signs of strain, with both sides repeatedly accusing each other of violating it in the last few days.

Earlier on Thursday, US Central Command said Kuwait had intercepted missiles from Iran on Wednesday night, with military officials calling the incident an “egregious ceasefire violation”.

Iran said it had fired on a US base in a Gulf state it did not name in retaliation for strikes earlier in the week, making it unclear if the missiles were intended to hit Kuwait.

Events in the Strait of Hormuz, which lies between Oman, the UAE and Iran, have shaken the global economy, with shipments of significant amounts of oil, natural gas and related supplies like fertiliser largely stranded, increasing the strain on consumers and food producers.The US blockade seeks to limit Iran’s own shipments and further weaken its access to cash, creating more pain for its long-weakened economy.

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Commercial traffic has quietly continued to flow through the strait, despite Iran’s assertions that it must approve any transits, though at a much lower volume than before the conflict.“Any violation of these regulations will place the security of their passage at serious risk,” Iran’s joint military command said Saturday in a statement carried by state TV, warning that any military vessels trying to interfere with that would be targeted.Iran has even charged tolls for transit as high as $2 million (around £1.5 million), which experts have called a violation of a principle of international maritime trade: freedom of peaceful navigation.Qatar’s deputy prime minister, Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan bin Ali Al Thani, said on Saturday that the Gulf nation opposes charging fees to transit.

“But for certain times when they say they are going to use it for mine clearing or some usage of the fees for a temporary time, this is something that is negotiable, and it could be something that will help the transit of the Strait of Hormuz to be back to normal stage,” he added.

It is understood that the US is yet to find or destroy any mines in the strait.

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