Turkey Urges Diplomacy as U.S. Boards Iranian Tanker Amid Ceasefire Review

Diplomatic efforts to stabilize the U.S.-Iran conflict gained a new facilitator on Thursday as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held talks with President Donald Trump. Erdogan expressed support for the current ceasefire and emphasized that remaining disputes can be resolved through negotiation. Tehran confirmed it is currently reviewing Washington’s latest position, with President Trump indicating a willingness to wait "a few days" for a response, though he maintained that renewed attacks remain an option if a deal is not reached. Despite these diplomatic signals, military tensions persist. U.S. Central Command reported the boarding of the Iranian-flagged oil tanker M/T Celestial Sea in the Gulf of Oman, alleging the vessel violated a U.S.-led blockade. In response, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued a sharp warning, stating that any further aggression would lead to an expansion of the war beyond the Middle East region. This military friction is mirrored by internal political strain in Washington, where reports suggest high-ranking officials, including former intelligence officer Amaryllis Fox Kennedy and counterterrorism chief Joe Kent, have departed or criticized the administration's direction. Inside Iran, the humanitarian and economic situation is deteriorating under the weight of the most prolonged internet blackout in history. The communication outage is severely impacting finance and public access to information. Simultaneously, the Iranian government has intensified domestic security measures, reporting the execution of two individuals on Thursday accused of belonging to a "terrorist" organization. These combined factors highlight a volatile environment where back-channel diplomacy is struggling against active maritime enforcement and internal instability in both nations.