When does the Iran ceasefire end and is Trump expected to extend it?

WorldPolitics
21 Apr 2026 • 5:15 AM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

When does the Iran ceasefire end and is Trump expected to extend it?

  • President Donald Trump told Bloomberg in a Monday phone interview that the two-week ceasefire, announced April 7, expires “Wednesday evening Washington time” and that it’s “highly unlikely that I’d extend it” if the U.S. and Iran can’t reach a deal before then.
  • The ceasefire was previously expected to expire at 0000 GMT Wednesday (8 p.m. ET Tuesday.)
  • It comes as the U.S. Navy's seizure of an Iranian-flagged cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz threw a second round of peace talks with Iran into doubt, the first such interception since the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports began last week.
  • Iran’s military vowed to respond and Trump shut down reports that he was considering ending the U.S. blockade in order to reach a deal with the Iranians.
  • Trump said Vice President JD Vance, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff would be going to Islamabad Monday, but Iranians made no commitment to a second round of talks with the U.S. and it wasn’t clear if Vance had departed the U.S. en route to Pakistan.

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