Deadlock over Iran's nuclear program and the Strait of Hormuz cripples peace efforts

Speaking to Fox News on Monday, Rubio said the latest proposal by Iran, first reported by Axios, was "better than what we thought they were going to submit." But he said that the U.S. administration faced "a deeply fractured" leadership in Iran, complicating efforts to negotiate an end to the war.

Rubio indicated that no progress had been made on the U.S. demand for Iran to give up its nuclear ambition.

"That fundamental issue still has to be confronted. That still remains the core issue here," Rubio said in the interview.

"We can't let them get away with it," he said. "They're very experienced negotiators, and we have to ensure that any deal that is made, any agreement that is made, is one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon at any point."

His comments came amid Iran's diplomatic outreach to Russia, as Iranian officials sought to gain political leverage and foreign support. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, met on Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who expressed his support for Iran in its war with the U.S. and Israel.

Araghchi also traveled to Oman and Pakistan for talks over the weekend. His visit to Pakistan prompted President Trump to say he would send his envoys for talks in Islamabad, only to later cancel the U.S. delegation's trip when Araghchi left.

Meanwhile, in a sign of the ongoing standoff in the strategic waterway of the Strait of Hormuz, a guided-missile destroyer blocked an Iranian oil tanker from sailing to an Iranian port, the U.S. Central Command said on social media on Monday.

In Lebanon, the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah also appears to be fragile. Israel has carried out widespread strikes in the south of the country and Hezbollah has fired several drones at Israeli troops.

A boat sails past a tanker anchored on the Strait of Hormuz off the coast Qeshm island, Iran, April 18, 2026. Asghar Besharati/AP

Asghar Besharati/AP

Here are further developments in the Middle East conflict:

Strait of Hormuz | Lebanon | International reactions | Iraq's new prime minister

Rubio says Iran's attempt to control the Strait of Hormuz can't be tolerated

Rubio also spoke against Iran's attempt to control the Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway through which about 20% of the world's oil passes, primarily from Gulf countries to markets in Asia.

"They cannot normalize nor can we tolerate them trying to normalize a system in which the Iranians decide who gets to use an international waterway and how much you have to pay them to use it," he said.

Traffic has largely been at a standstill in the Strait of Hormuz since Iran moved to exert its control over the strait in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli strikes. The U.S. has also imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, in a move aimed at increasing economic pressure on Iran to agree to Washington's terms for an end to the war.

Israel and Hezbollah trade fire

The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon appeared to be fraying on Tuesday as peace talks between the U.S. and Iran remained in flux.

Israel has carried out widespread strikes in Lebanon's south as Hezbollah has fired several drones at Israeli troops.

The temporary ceasefire, which came into effect nearly two weeks ago, is still largely in place. No strikes have taken place in Beirut since that truce was agreed in Washington, with U.S. mediation.

But elsewhere in the country, attacks have been ramping up from both sides. In the south, many had to re-evacuate their homes.

The talks between the U.S. and Iran — which have largely stagnated — have been connected to the ceasefire in Lebanon. Iran has previously demanded that Israel stop its attacks in Lebanon as a condition to continue negotiating with the U.S.

International backlash over the war in Iran

The prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is being met with increased criticism by world leaders, with some scrambling to deal with growing discontent over high fuel prices that have pushed up living costs.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz blasted the U.S. administration on Monday for lacking a strategy in its war with Iran.

"The Americans clearly have no strategy. And the problem with conflicts like this is always that it's not enough just to get in - you also have to get out," Merz told a student forum in the German town of Marsberg on Monday.

He said Iranians were "perhaps very skillfully refusing to negotiate" by having the U.S. delegation travel to Islamabad and concluding the talks with no outcome.

In this photo released by Tasnim News Agency, Revolutionary Guard Navy (IRGC) armed men climb aboard the cargo ship MSC Francesca during what state media described as the seizure of one of two vessels accused of violations in the Strait of Hormuz, April 21, 2026. Meysam Mirzadeh/AP/Tasnim News Agency

Meysam Mirzadeh/AP/Tasnim News Agency

"An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards," Merz said.

His comments came as Bahrain, a U.S. ally and one of the Gulf countries that had its oil refineries attacked by Iranian drones, convened a high-level meeting at the United Nations to demand that Iran reopens the Strait of Hormuz.

While most of the countries sided with Bahrain's call, Russian and Chinese representatives blamed the blockade on the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. The Bahrain-sponsored statement did not mention the U.S. blockade of the passage.

Australia's foreign minister, Penny Wong, began a diplomatic tour in Japan, China and South Korea to discuss "shared energy security" amid growing concerns of export controls by Asian countries.

"Of course I'm concerned about what is happening in the Strait of Hormuz and what's happening in terms of Australia's supplies. We are all concerned, which is why we are making sure we engage with the countries of the region," she said Monday.

She said that Australia and the countries in the region, which get 80% of their oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz, have been "disproportionately affected."

Iraqi leaders agree on a new prime minister

Iraqi political leaders have agreed on a new prime minister months after an election.

The prime minister designate, Ali al-Zaidi, a banker, is a political newcomer.

Zaidi is seen as a compromise candidate after President Trump rejected an Iran-backed former prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, to lead the country.

The U.S. controls Iraq's supply of dollars and has used that as leverage.

Zaidi is a controversial pick who still faces hurdles before taking the job.

He headed an Iraqi bank that was among a group of financial institutions denied access to dollars two years ago, through the Iraqi banking system, due to concerns of money being channeled to Iran.

The Iraqi parliament has a month to approve Zaidi's cabinet and program for him to form a government.

Kat Lonsdorf in Beirut, Lebanon, Jane Arraf in Amman, Jordan and Tina Kraja in Washington, D.C. contributed reporting to this story.