Iran Closes Strait of Hormuz as US Talks Begin, Contradicting Its Own Peace Terms

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard announced the Strait of Hormuz closure on June 20, 2026, the day US and Iranian delegations convened in Switzerland for ceasefire negotiations. The move directly contradicts the terms of a US-Iran memorandum already under discussion, which explicitly requires Iran to reopen the waterway. The US military rejected Iran's closure claim as without merit. Analysts view Tehran's announcement as either final leverage before signing or a signal of fractured internal consensus on the deal.