US Iran war highlights: Trump says Iran ‘has come a long way’, questions if it will go far enough

US Iran war LIVE updates: Oil surged to the highest since June 2022, with no end in sight to the US-Iran conflict or choked-off energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, heightening concerns over a rapidly shrinking global supply cushion.

Brent, the global benchmark, rose more than 7% to trade above $119.50 a barrel before paring some gains to settle around $118 a barrel, a fresh high since the Iran war began two months ago.

US Iran war LIVE updates: Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump held a phone call on Wednesday in which the Russian leader put forward ideas on resolving the conflict over Iran's nuclear programme, a Kremlin aide said.

Putin also proposed a repeat of a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine to mark the anniversary of the end of World War Two next month, the aide said. Putin announced a similar truce last year which lasted three days but was not agreed with Kyiv.

US Iran war LIVE updates: US President Donald Trump said that Iran “has come a long way,” but raised doubts about whether the country would go far enough in addressing key concerns around the peace talks.

His remarks come at a time when peace talks between US and Iran have ended in a deadlock over Iran's nuclear programme and the control of Strait of Hormuz

US Iran war LIVE updates: President Donald Trump said on Wednesday Iran talks are being conducted by phone after he canceled a trip over the weekend for U.S. negotiators to travel to Pakistan to speak with Tehran officials.

US Iran war LIVE updates: Iranian soccer federation officials will not attend the FIFA congress in Canada, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday, citing what it said was "inappropriate behaviour of immigration officials" at Toronto airport.

Tasnim said that three federation officials arrived with visas to participate in Thursday's congress but returned on the next available flight.

US Iran war LIVE updates: Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump held a phone call on Wednesday in which the Russian leader put forward ideas on resolving the conflict over Iran's nuclear programme and proposed a temporary Ukraine ceasefire to mark the anniversary of the end of World War Two next month, a Kremlin aide said.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) has prepared a plan for a "short and powerful" wave of strikes on Iran in hopes of breaking the negotiating deadlock, three sources with knowledge told Axios.

Continuing to address the House Armed Services Committee, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has harshly criticised US Congressman John Garamendi, who said the US’s military strategy in Iran has been incompetent, bringing the country into a “quagmire”.

“Statements like that are reckless to our troops. Who are you cheering for?” Hegseth said.

“It undermines the mission,” he continued.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, said war is not a solution to the ongoing crisis, adding that diplomacy remains the only viable path forward amid a stalemate in talks.

“War is not a solution. It is part of the problem,” Khatibzadeh said, stressing that all alternatives to diplomacy are “unattractive”.

For weeks, Khatibzadeh said, Iran has put forward proposals to end the war through negotiations based on “equal terms and conditions”.

At least 11 people have also been wounded in the Israeli air raid on the village of Tayr Debba, in the Tyre district, in southern Lebanon, the Health Ministry has said.

Israeli attacks since March 2 have killed at least 2,534 people, wounded 7,863 others, and displaced more than 1.6 million people, according to official figures.

Despite a ceasefire, Israel and Hezbollah have both engaged in fighting, trading blame over violations of the fragile truce.

Attending the House Armed ⁠Services Committee hearing alongside Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Pentagon official Jules ‌Hurst gave an update on the total cost of the Iran war so far.

He said the war has so far cost $25 billion, mostly on munitions.

Phone call between foreign ministers of Iran and India, discussions were held on the "latest developments related to the ceasefire, bilateral relations, and regional and international developments", according to Iranian side.

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has said he “very much welcomes” discussing Iran, which he anticipates will come up in today’s session.

He repeated Donald Trump’s claim that the US will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon and said the US has negotiators working towards a deal.

“The biggest adversaries we face at this point are the reckless, feckless and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Democrats,” said Hegseth

The US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said that he “appreciates the opportunity” to testify in favour of President Donald Trump’s landmark $1.5 trillion defence budget request for fiscal year 2027.

“The president’s budget request reflects the urgency of the moment,” said Hegseth.

The US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is facing questioning from lawmakers for the first time since Trump launched the war on Iran.

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun says Israel is mistaken “if it believes it can achieve security through violations and the destruction of border villages”.

The head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, Alexey Likhachev, has said that Russia has not yet decided whether to return its personnel to Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant.

Oil prices spiked sharply on Wednesday after a report that US President Donald Trump had told national security officials to prepare for a long blockade of Iran's ports and the Strait of Hormuz.

At around 1335 GMT, a barrel of Brent crude for June delivery was up 5.16 per cent at $117, its highest level since the fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran came into effect.

The benchmark US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, for delivery in the same month, gained 4.85 per cent to reach $104.78, following a report in The Wall Street Journal.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth will face questioning from lawmakers later today for the first time since the Trump administration went to war with Iran, the Associated Press reported.

The hearing is being held before the House Armed Services Committee to discuss the administration’s 2027 military budget proposal, which would boost defence spending to a historic $1.5 trillion.

More than 1.2 million people in Lebanon are expected to face acute hunger due to the war between Israel and Hezbollah, a UN-backed report has said.

Some “1.24 million people – nearly one in four of the population analysed – are expected to face food insecurity” at crisis levels or worse between April and August 2026, says a joint statement by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, the World Food Programme and Lebanon’s Agriculture Ministry.

This marks a “significant deterioration” from before the war erupted in March, “when an estimated 874,000 people, roughly 17 per cent of the population, were experiencing acute food insecurity”, the statement said.

“The deterioration is due to conflict, displacement and economic pressures.”

Britain has asked its refineries to maximise jet fuel supply as it continues to make contingency plans to increase supply flexibility, said Energy Department Minister Michael Shanks.

His comments come as airlines are set to face a major challenge from rising jet fuel prices driven by the war in Iran, as the peak holiday season approaches.

On Tuesday, the head of the International Air Transport Association said the jet fuel crisis would first affect Asia, then Europe, followed by Africa and Latin America.

US President Donald Trump met with top officials from Chevron and other energy companies on Tuesday to discuss a range of topics, including IS oil production, oil futures, shipping and natural gas, a White House official said on Wednesday.

Chevron's spokesperson said its CEO, Mike Wirth, attended the gathering to discuss global oil markets, which have been roiled by the US-Israeli war against Iran.

Pakistan’s PM says efforts to establish “peace in the Middle East… are still ongoing” as the country’s “journey of economic development has come to a halt”.

In a social media post by the PM’s office, Sharif said: “Due to our immense efforts, the ceasefire has been extended, which is still ongoing”.

“Efforts for peace are still ongoing, and there will be no reduction in them.”