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Trump says he is losing patience with Iran after talks with China’s Xi

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U.S. President Donald Trump said his patience with Iran was running out after he discussed the costly and unpopular war with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday and a ship was reported seized by Iranian personnel off the United ​Arab Emirates.

The White House said Trump and Xi had agreed during talks in Beijing on the need to keep the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane open. Iran effectively shut the waterway in response to U.S.-Israeli attacks which ‌began on February 28, causing an unprecedented disruption to global energy supplies. China is close to Iran and the main buyer of its oil, Reuters reported.

The U.S. paused its attacks on Iran last month but began a blockade of the country’s ports. Talks aimed at ending the conflict have stalled with Iran refusing to end its nuclear program or relinquish its stockpile of enriched uranium.

“I am not going to be much more patient,” Trump said in an interview aired on Thursday night on Fox News’ “Hannity” program. “They should make a deal.”

On the key issue of Iran’s hidden stockpile of enriched uranium, Trump suggested it only ​needed to be secured by the U.S. for public relations purposes.

“I don’t think it’s necessary except from a public relations standpoint,” Trump said in the interview.

“I just feel better if I got it, actually. But it’s, I think, it’s ​more for public relations than it is for anything else.”

In the latest incidents on the trade route, an Indian cargo vessel carrying livestock from Africa to the UAE was sunk on Wednesday ⁠in waters off the coast of Oman.

India condemned the attack and said all 14 crew members had been rescued by the Omani coast guard. Vanguard, a British maritime security advisory firm, said the vessel was believed to have been hit by a missile or ​drone which caused an explosion.

Separately, British maritime security agency UKMTO reported on Thursday that “unauthorised personnel” had boarded a ship anchored off the coast of the UAE port of Fujairah, and were steering it towards Iran.

Vanguard said a company security officer had reported that “the vessel was taken ​by Iranian personnel while at anchor.”

After talks between Trump and Xi on Thursday, the White House said the leaders had agreed that the strait should be open and that Xi made clear China’s opposition to the militarisation of the strait and any effort to charge a toll for its use.

Trump said Xi also promised not to send Iran military equipment. “He said he’s not going to give military equipment, that’s a big statement,” Trump said on “Hannity”.

Xi also expressed interest in purchasing more American oil to reduce China’s future dependence on the strait and the leaders agreed that Iran should never obtain nuclear weapons, ​the White House readout said. Tehran has denied seeking such weapons.

DIPLOMACY ON HOLD

Trump is keen to elicit Chinese support to end a war that has become an electoral liability as it drags on towards key U.S. midterm elections in November. But analysts doubt Xi will ​be willing to push Iran hard or end support for its military, given its value as a strategic counterweight to the U.S.

In an interview with CNBC from Beijing, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he believed China would “do what they can” to help open the strait, something “very much ‌in their interest.” ⁠Before the war, about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed through the waterway.

But diplomacy has been on hold since last week when Iran and the U.S. each rejected the other’s most recent proposals.

Fujairah is the UAE’s sole oil port, on the Gulf of Oman just outside the Strait of Hormuz, and enables some shipments to reach markets without passing through the chokepoint.

Iran appears to be making more deals with countries to allow some ships to pass through the strait – if they accept Tehran’s terms.

A Japanese tanker crossed on Wednesday after Japan’s prime minister announced that she had requested help from the Iranian president. A huge Chinese tanker also crossed on Wednesday, and Iran’s Fars news agency reported on Thursday that an agreement had been reached to let some Chinese ships pass.

Iran’s Revolutionary ​Guards said 30 vessels had passed through the strait since Wednesday ​evening, still far short of the 140 on a ⁠typical day before the war, but a substantial increase if confirmed.

According to shipping analytics firm Kpler, some 10 ships had sailed through the strait in the past 24 hours, against five to seven that have crossed daily in recent weeks.

IRAN’S THREAT ‘SIGNIFICANTLY DEGRADED’

Thousands of Iranians were killed in the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes in the first weeks of the war, and thousands more have been killed in Lebanon ​since the war reignited fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

Talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials on Thursday in Washington were productive and positive, according to a senior State Department ​official, who said they were set ⁠to continue on Friday.

Trump said his aims in starting the war were to destroy Iran’s nuclear program, end its ability to attack neighbours and make it easier for Iranians to overthrow their government.

A senior U.S. admiral told a U.S. Senate committee on Thursday Iran’s ability to threaten its neighbours and U.S. regional interests had been “significantly degraded”.

“They no longer threaten regional partners, or the United States, in ways that they were able to do before, across every domain,” Admiral Brad Cooper said.

But Cooper declined to directly address reports by Reuters and other news organisations that Iran ⁠had retained significant missile ​and drone capabilities.

Iran’s rulers, who used force to put down anti-government protests at the start of the year, have faced no organised opposition since the war ​began. And their closure of the strait has given them additional leverage in negotiations.

Washington wants Tehran to hand over the uranium and forgo further enrichment. Iran is seeking the lifting of sanctions, reparations for war damage and acknowledgment of its control over the strait.

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US imposes sanctions on 13 tied to Iran weapons procurement

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “Treasury will not tolerate any support to ​the regime and will continue to identify, expose, and isolate Iran’s ⁠enablers.”

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The US government announced fresh sanctions on Tuesday against 13 individuals and entities, including some based in Russia, China, Hong Kong ​and Pakistan, saying they helped Iran procure weapons and components.

The sanctions announced by the ‌Treasury and State departments are part of the Trump administration’s effort to isolate Iran economically and force it to negotiate an end to the war that began with a US-Israeli strike on Iran ​on February 28.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “Treasury will not tolerate any support to ​the regime and will continue to identify, expose, and isolate Iran’s ⁠enablers.”

Treasury said the sanctions were aimed at degrading Tehran’s ability to reconstitute its ​weapons programs, while increasing the costs for those who supported its procurement efforts.

Those targeted ​in Tuesday’s sanctions announcements include:

Seyyed Asghar Alizadeh Tabatabai, a Beijing-based representative of Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics agency, who Treasury said had coordinated the procurement of finished weapons systems ​and dual-use components in China on Iran’s behalf.

Iran-based Kavoshcom Asia R and D ​Group, which Treasury said had procured electronics including connectors for Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company.

Hong Kong-based ‌EC ⁠Mojo Technology Co Limited, which Treasury said had provided electronic components in support of Kavoshcom’s procurement efforts, and EC Mojo’s China-based representative Li Fen.

Pakistan-based Waseem Pasha Tajammal, who serves as chairman of Cavalier Group, a privately owned defense company with locations in ​Pakistan and internationally.

Joint Stock ​Company Experimental Design ⁠Bureau Named After A.S. Yakovlev, a Russia-based aircraft manufacturer.

MG-Flot LLC, a Russia-based shipping company whose vessels transport weapons for the Russian ​government.

Saha Airlines, an Iran-based airline affiliated with the country’s air ​force.

Brett Erickson, ⁠managing principal with Obsidian Risk Advisors, said the latest sanctions action would do little to impede Iran’s ability to launch missiles and drones in the Strait of Hormuz. “This is ⁠optics ​management for the Trump administration to claim ‘We’re hammering ​them,’ when the reality is we’re poking them with a toothpick,” he said.

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US, Iran separately talk with mediators in latest bid to end war

US officials separately ​spoke with mediators on Monday, US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House, without giving further details.

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US and Iranian officials spoke separately with mediators on Monday as part ‌of a renewed effort to end seven months of war, according to officials of both countries, Reuters reported.

Any further talks are expected to focus on an amended version of a seven-day proposal that Iran presented last week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, ​an official briefed on the negotiations told Reuters.

The war began in late February with US and Israeli ​attacks on Iran, killing thousands of people over seven months and shocking global markets ⁠as vital waterways for oil remained choked. The US and Iran have twice previously agreed to ceasefires in ​mediated peace talks, in April and June. Those agreements quickly unraveled.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who remained in New ​York after attending the General Assembly, said Iran expected to receive the US response to its latest ceasefire proposals and its conditions for restoring passage of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, according to state news agency IRNA.

“If the Americans claim ​they are seeking an agreement or a peaceful solution, we have presented that solution,” Araqchi said.

US officials separately ​spoke with mediators on Monday, US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House, without giving further details.

Iran’s seven-day plan envisages an end to all hostilities in Iran and Lebanon, the unfreezing of billions of dollars’ worth of Iranian assets, an end to sanctions on Iranian oil and the lifting of the US blockade on Iranian ports.

Iran would then allow the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital conduit for ​oil tankers, and the two ​sides would also resume ⁠talks on Iran’s nuclear program and Trump’s wish to seize or eliminate its highly enriched uranium, read the report.

Trump said on Saturday he had rejected Iran’s proposal, saying Iran wanted a swift ​agreement because of the crippling economic pressure it is under. However, he also told ​Axios on ⁠Sunday that he expected US negotiators to engage in further talks this week.

Araqchi said on Sunday that mediators had not formally conveyed a US rejection, and that Iran was awaiting Washington’s definitive position before deciding its next steps.

“Our conditions are ⁠clear, and ​any move toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz is contingent on ​these conditions being met,” he said on Sunday, adding that only a negotiated solution could resolve the impasse.

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Floods, landslides kill 56 in India and 14 in Nepal

In India, the Central Water Commission said 30 river-monitoring stations across seven states indicated a “severe situation”.

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Heavy rain and storms have triggered floods and landslides that killed 56 people in India, while in Nepal, 14 have died and another 11 are missing, with authorities there warning on Sunday ​that more flash floods are possible, Reuters reported.

India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh recorded 66.5 mm of ​rain between September 25 and the morning of September 27, compared with a ⁠normal 7.6 mm for the period, Hrishikesh Bhaskar Yashod, the state’s relief commissioner, said on Sunday.

Authorities are ​carrying out rescue operations in waterlogged areas and distributing relief, while officials have been told to assess ​crop damage and provide compensation.

In addition to the 56 deaths, 46 people have been injured and more than 1,000 houses have been damaged.

Nepali authorities warned of possible flash floods in 49 of the country’s 77 districts, with more than half ​facing high flood or flash-flood risks as water levels in major rivers and tributaries continued to rise.

Shanti ​Mahat, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said Rasuwa and Nuwakot, areas hit by ‌last month’s deadly ⁠floods that killed more than 1,450 people and left thousands still missing, should remain “alert” but were not currently considered high-risk areas.

Power supply has been completely disrupted in the Manang, Mustang, Myagdi and Baglung districts, with authorities working to restore electricity, energy ministry officials said.

Flooding of the Rahuganga River damaged the structure and ​transmission-line towers of a ​40-megawatt hydropower project, Water ⁠Resources and Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha said.

In India, the Central Water Commission said 30 river-monitoring stations across seven states indicated a “severe situation”.

Several major rivers, including ​the Ganga, Gandak, Kosi, Bagmati and Narmada, were above danger levels, read the report.

Floods and ​landslides also disrupted ⁠telecommunications in parts of Nepal after damage to optical fibres and power supplies, Communications Minister Bikram Timilsinha said.

In a separate incident in Nepal, 10 local workers were also missing after an avalanche buried the base camp ⁠of the ​7,126-metre (23,379-ft) Himlung Himal in the northern Manang district, hiking officials ​said.

The workers had been setting up tents for foreign climbers, who were not present when the avalanche struck.

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