Iran strikes defiant tone on eve of US naval blockade

China said on Monday that it has always adopted a prudent and responsible attitude toward its military exports, while also urging calm after US President Donald Trump threatened a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun made the comments at a press conference when asked about rising tensions after the collapse of US-Iran talks.

CNN reported late on Friday that US intelligence indicated Beijing was preparing to deliver new air defense systems to Iran within the next few weeks.

According to the Chinese spokesperson, all sides should remain calm and exercise restraint.

Guo added that keeping the Strait of Hormuz safe, stable and unimpeded served the common interest of the international community and that China stands ready to work with all sides to safeguard energy security and supply.

Commenting on the US-Iran talks in Islamabad, Guo said the opening of negotiations was a step toward easing the situation, voicing hope that all parties abide by the ceasefire.

US restrictions on Iran’s vessels are illegal and “amount to piracy,” Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said on Monday and warned that Tehran would impose a permanent mechanism to control the Strait of Hormuz after US threats to blockade it.

“If the security of the Islamic Republic’s ports in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman is threatened, no port in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman will remain safe,” said the headquarters’ spokesman.

He added that, after the end of the war, Iran would enforce a lasting mechanism for controlling the Strait of Hormuz.

The US plan for a naval blockade of Iran’s ports shows “confusion and a lack of a proper and workable strategy,” said an Iranian lawmaker on Monday.

Vahid Ahmadi, a member of parliament’s national security committee, said any maritime blockade of the Islamic Republic would lead to wider global energy crises.

“The first place where it would create a flood is the economy of Western countries and the Americans,” he said.

He added that the United States had believed it could achieve at the negotiating table at least some of what it failed to gain in war.

ASEAN foreign ministers urged the United States and Iran on Monday to continue negotiations toward a permanent end to the conflict and fully implement the ceasefire.

The ministers met virtually to discuss the war in the Middle East and called for the restoration of safe, unimpeded and continuous transit for vessels and aircraft through the Strait of Hormuz.

Saudi Arabia’s crude oil sales to China are set to halve in May as the war in the Middle East disrupts flows and pushes up prices, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing traders familiar with the matter.

The world’s biggest oil exporter is expected to ship about 20 million barrels to its customers in China next month.

That compares with roughly 40 million barrels allocated for loading in April.

The traders said the lower volumes reflected market disruption linked to the regional conflict, which has affected supply routes and lifted crude prices.

Authorities in Iran executed at least 1,639 people in 2025, the highest annual number since 1989, two rights groups said, warning Tehran could use capital punishment even more widely after protests in January and the war with Israel and the United States.

The figure marked a 68% increase from the 975 executions recorded in 2024, according to a joint annual report by Norway-based Iran Human Rights and Paris-based Together Against the Death Penalty.

If the Islamic Republic “survives the current crisis, there is a serious risk that executions will be used even more extensively as a tool of oppression and repression,” read the report.

The report said 48 women were among those executed.

The two groups said the sharp rise pointed to a broader use of the death penalty as a tool of intimidation.

“The United States to Blockade Ships Entering or Exiting Iranian Ports on April 13 at 10:00 A.M. ET,” US President Donald Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

Japan was closely watching developments between the United States and Iran, diplomatic efforts by related countries, and situation around the Strait of Hormuz, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said on Monday.

“The most important thing is that the situation is actually calmed down,” Kihara told a news conference, and voiced hope that diplomacy would lead to an agreement.

Asked whether Japan could take part in operations such as clearing sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, Kihara said no decision had been made on any deployment forces.

PetroChina’s chairman held a video meeting with Qatar’s energy minister on Monday and discussed how the recent regional situation could affect global energy supply and demand, the Chinese company said.

The two sides also discussed deeper cooperation in the oil and gas sector, according to a PetroChina statement.

Concern is growing over the whereabouts of Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh 12 days after her arrest, the human rights website HRANA reported.

According to the report, Sotoudeh has had only one brief phone call with her family during this period. In the call, she said she had been detained by agents of Iran’s Intelligence Ministry but did not disclose where she was being held.

HRANA said Sotoudeh’s family has contacted judicial and security authorities to seek information about her situation but were reportedly told that her name is not registered in any judicial authority.