President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he is extending the moratorium on attacks on Iranian energy facilities by 10 days, until April 6, at the request of the Islamic Republic’s government.
President Trump’s actions are intended to avoid an escalation of war with Iran, as the United States has signaled it wants a negotiated end to the conflict and the crucial Strait of Hormuz remains almost completely closed to oil shipments.
His announcement came as major U.S. stock indexes fell and oil prices rose.
“As requested by the Iranian government, I ask that this statement serve as a statement that I am suspending the destruction of energy plants for a period of time,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
“Negotiations are ongoing and despite false statements to the contrary by fake news media and others, they are progressing very well. Thank you for your attention to this issue!”
An initial five-day suspension of U.S. attacks on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure was scheduled to end on Friday. President Trump had announced the first suspension on Truth Social on Monday.
President Trump said in a Fox News interview late Thursday that the postponement was “requested by the Iranians to me.”
He said Iran had asked for a one-week extension, but decided on a 10-day extension “because they provided us with a ship.”
He was referring to earlier claims that Iran had allowed 10 tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz this week as a “gift” to the United States.
The war against Iran began on February 28 with attacks by the United States and Israel.
The war led to a spike in oil prices as Iran effectively cut off shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important shipping route for the movement of crude oil.
The benchmark S&P 500 stock index fell 1.74% on Thursday, the biggest single-day decline since early 2026, as oil prices rose. Brent crude oil futures rose more than 5.6% to end at $108.01 per barrel.
President Trump told reporters at the White House early Thursday that the U.S. has “very substantive discussions going on regarding Iran.”
Tehran denied it was in direct talks with the US
