From the Liveblog of
Thursday, September 3, 2026
Vance: Washington will only resume talks with Iran when it stops targeting ships in Hormuz
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
US Vice President JD Vance says Washington will only return to negotiations with Iran if Tehran stops targeting commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
“We are not talking to the Iranians, and we are not going to talk to them unless they stop shooting at commercial shipping,” Vance says during a press briefing. “My advice to the Iranians is stop acting like crazy people.”
US President Donald Trump has recently suggested that he is not interested in negotiating with Iran under any circumstances, so Vance’s remarks indicated a bit more flexibility on behalf of the administration.
Asked whether the Iran war will be over by the November 3 midterms, Vance responds, “I wouldn’t call it a war,” before indicating that the conflict timeline will depend on whether Iran allows traffic in the Strait of Hormuz to flow freely.
Vance claims that the flow of oil in the strait is getting closer to prewar levels and that 15 million barrels came out of the channel last night.
“The reason gas prices are so high right now is because the Iranians are shooting at commercial shipping… Yes, gas prices are higher in the United States, but they’re way worse everywhere else in the world,” he says, touting the Trump administration’s energy policy.
On the deadly US strike earlier this week that reportedly hit a wedding in southern Iran, Vance confirms that CENTCOM is probing the matter. while expressing skepticism over Iranian state media’s information on the incident.
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