Washington, September 4, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The United States will not hold negotiations with Iran until Tehran stops attacking commercial shipping, US Vice-President J.D. Vance said on Thursday, warning that Washington could use economic, military, diplomatic and covert pressure to protect global energy supplies and prevent Iran from rebuilding its nuclear capabilities.
“The President’s been very clear, we’re not talking to them and we’re not going to talk to them unless they stop shooting at commercial shipping,” Vance told a White House press briefing.
He said the US would not set a deadline for its operations, arguing that their duration would depend on Iran’s conduct around the Strait of Hormuz. Vance said establishing an “artificial timeline” would be irresponsible while commercial oil and gas vessels remained under threat.
Vance also rejected characterising the situation as an ongoing war, saying major combat operations were no longer underway and that Washington’s immediate priority was maintaining the flow of energy through the Strait of Hormuz.
“The Iranians would like zero million barrels to come out of the Strait of Hormuz. Last night, 15 million barrels came out of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, attributing the continued flow to US action.
The Vice-President said the absence of a global energy crisis reflected American efforts to protect commercial shipping and maintained that no other country had the capability to perform the same role.
Asked about the possibility of arming Iranian dissidents, Vance declined to provide details but said President Donald Trump had several options available.
“Everything that could happen is on the table: Economic pressure, military pressure, diplomatic pressure, covert pressure,” he said.
Vance also said China had responded to some US requests concerning Iran, although he was unsure whether Trump had directly spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping about restricting financial services to Tehran.
He said Turkey, Azerbaijan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar were also helping put pressure on Iran, with some governments cooperating privately without publicly acknowledging their involvement.
According to Vance, the US pressure campaign has two objectives: protecting commercial shipping and preventing Tehran from obtaining the resources needed to restore its nuclear capabilities.
“So far, we haven’t seen them try to do so, but part of what we’re doing here is, having destroyed their nuclear enrichment capacity, we’re trying to ensure they don’t rebuild it,” he said.
The Strait of Hormuz is a major global energy route connecting oil-producing Gulf states with international markets. Any prolonged disruption could affect shipping, insurance and energy prices worldwide.
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