US President Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump has extended a two-week ceasefire with Iran while announcing the continuation of an blockade on the Islamic Republic`s ports and vessels-despite Tehran`s insistence that the blockade must be lifted for bilateral talks to continue.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said the extension came "upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan."

He added that he had "directed our military to continue the blockade."

The Islamic Republic, however, unequivocally insisted on the removal of the blockade, stating that it would not rejoin negotiations under pressure.

Trump also said the United States would continue to cease its aggression "until such time as their [Iran`s] leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal."

Trump announced the two-week cessation of aggression on April 7 after agreeing to a ten-point proposal from Iran to permanently end the aggression.

It came after 100 waves of decisive retaliatory strikes by Iran`s armed forces against the US and the Israeli regime`s unprovoked war of aggression against the country.

The reprisals delivered severe blows to sensitive and strategic American and Israeli targets across the region, including those located in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia.

Talks were subsequently initiated in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, but stopped short of yielding an agreement amid Washington`s maximalist demands and its refusal to back down from its unreasonable stances.