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Trump: Ceasefire Extended, Blockade Of Iranian Ports Remains; CNN Projects Virginia Voters Approve Democratic Redistricting Plan; Watching Oil Prices As Trump Extends Ceasefire With Iran. Aired 5- 5:30a ET

Aired April 22, 2026 - 05:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[05:00:25]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. I'm Erica Hill in New York.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Becky Anderson, live from our Middle East headquarters in Abu Dhabi.

Our top story this hour, President Donald Trump has extended the ceasefire with Iran. The president posted on social media that his administration is waiting for a, quote, "unified proposal" from the Iranian government, and that the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports will remain.

Tehran dismissing the extension as meaningless and advisor to Iran's top negotiator is calling it a, quote, "ploy" to buy time for a surprise strike, adding that the time for Iran to take the initiative has come.

Meanwhile, President Trump told CNBC that Iran wants the Strait of Hormuz opened, but he doesn't plan to do so without a deal. Sources tell CNN the U.S. blockade has contributed to the uncertainty around the potential next round of talks between Washington and Tehran.

We, of course, are following all of the developments. Nic Robertson is standing by for you in Islamabad, in Pakistan. Oren Liebermann first live for us from Jerusalem.

And, Oren, what is the latest very specifically around the Strait of Hormuz and the decision by Donald Trump to extend this ceasefire?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Becky, from what were seeing in both the actions of the us and Iran, I think there's very little hope or expectation that the Strait of Hormuz will open to any significant traffic over the course of the day, or potentially over the next few days. On Tuesday, the U.S. seized a vessel, a stateless sanctioned vessel that had transported Iranian oil.

And what's key here is the seizure appears to have happened in the Indian Ocean, according to marine tracking websites. The ship, known as the Tifani, was seized hundreds, if not thousands of miles away from Iran's coast. As the U.S. has made clear, it will not let up on its blockade of Iranian ports and is now going after ships sanctioned for transporting Iranian oil or being linked to Iran in some way.

Iran has demanded that the U.S. lift its blockade before there's any movement on negotiations or apparently before they attend talks with the United States. Meanwhile, as long as the U.S. has its blockade, Iran is making sure that the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed.

On Wednesday, earlier today, according to Iran's, or rather according to the U.K.'s marine traffic and tracking organization, Iran fired on a ship that was attempting to transit through the Strait of Hormuz. According to that agency, an Iranian gunboat from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired on a ship there. Meanwhile, in terms of Iran's public messaging, they held a military parade in the capital of Tehran, where they showed off a ballistic missile, other weaponry also shown at other parades.

So it doesn't look like Iran is willing to back down here, despite claims by President Donald Trump that Iran is ready to negotiate and is ready to give in to American demands. So it's very difficult from where were sitting now, to see a way in which this moves, moves forward. And that speaks to the level of mistrust here between the U.S. and between Iran. President Donald Trump extended the ceasefire, but it's unclear for how long or if he's willing to extend it again.

It has given a window, I would say, for some sort of diplomacy here, but that window is barely open. And there's so much mistrust between the sides that its difficult to see it opening further, at least from where we sit right now, Becky.

ANDERSON: And at the heart of that diplomacy, of course, Oren, is Pakistan. Let's get to Nic, who is in Islamabad. So what is the view there, Nic?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Diplomacy is still very much in play. The Iranian ambassador in this city, the Iranian ambassador to Pakistan, has just arrived at the prime ministers office for a meeting with Pakistan's prime minister. And we also know that the Iranian ambassador was involved in behind the scenes diplomacy yesterday as well, in meetings that ultimately led to President Trump announcing that ceasefire.

So diplomacy in play, there remains a degree of optimism among the mediators. Pakistani officials involved in trying to bring the U.S. and Iran together, that they can make some progress. Not clear if they're confident that talks could be announced as early as today, but there is confidence still that they can bring Iran back to the table here.

[05:05:00]

It was ever so close yesterday. And I think to the key points, when we try to understand Iran's position, we had late last night, the foreign minister, the sort of number two of their negotiating team last round, at least saying that the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz by the United States was a war crime. We hear again from many officials in Iran that they want that the unblocking of the Strait of Hormuz as a condition to come into the talks.

That seems very unlikely. President Trump made that clear in his statement yesterday. He was lifting the ceasefire or extending the ceasefire rather, but not lifting the U.S. blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. How does that specifically that sort of segmenting of the picture play into Iran's thinking?

We also heard from the top negotiator in Iran yesterday saying that Iran wouldn't come to the talks under the shadow of a threat. The threat partly was the expiration of that ceasefire was very, very clear to President Trump was prepared to use that as a negotiating tool inside the talks. So that's been removed.

Iran is very skilled. We've seen this historically in other negotiations trying to salami slice down their opponents position to get the little incremental bits that they want. Ultimately, they get a significant portion of what they want. It appears they've got what they wanted in terms of the ceasefire lifting, although they say we didn't ask for that, but it does lift some level of threat behind the talks from an Iranian perspective, trust is way down.

But it does seem as if the next steps, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz, are going to happen. It's more likely to happen around the table. And that does seem to put the ball in Iran's court right now.

ANDERSON: Yeah. It's good to have you there, Nic. Thank you. Nic Robertson is in Islamabad.

Let's get to Doha in Qatar. I want to bring in regional expert Mehran Kamrava, who is in Qatar and with peace talks on hold and an indefinite ceasefire, how would you describe where we are right now and where this could go?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.

ANDERSON: Not sure that our guests can hear us. Mehran, can you hear me there in Doha?

All right. It sounds as if we've got some technical issues with our guests. Well try and get Mehran Kamrava back a little later in the hour for more coverage.

Let's get you back to Erica Hill in New York.

HILL: All right. Becky, thanks.

CNN can now project that Virginia voters have approved a plan to redraw the states congressional map that measure passing by just a few percentage points. That small divide, though, could really mean some big changes heading into the midterms.

Here's CNN's Jeff Zeleny with more from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: A major win for Democrats in Virginia on Monday evening, winning that redistricting referendum that will give the party up to four more seats in the House of Representatives. A critical number in this midterm election fight. It's also the latest chapter in this nearly year long gerrymandering war that has been playing out ever since. President Trump famously said last summer that he wants five more Republican seats in Texas. He said he was entitled to them.

Of course, California Democrats followed suit, having a referendum there, adding five more Democratic seats. Several other states have. Well, but Virginia was the only other state to actually take this to the voters. And in a resounding fashion, Virginia voters have said that, yes, they do approve of redrawing the maps.

It's an extensive gerrymander. There is no doubt about that. It effectively changes the delegation from six Democrats and five Republicans to ten Democrats and one Republican. And those four seats, again, so critical in the midterm elections. Its a strong rebuke of president Trump. There is no doubt it effectively erases all of the gains that he hoped he would get with that mid the mid-decade redistricting effort.

Now, Democratic Governor Abigail Spanberger of Virginia was elected just last fall on a more moderate message. She won by some 15 percentage points. The results on Monday evening were not nearly that wide.

She's been watching this with a great sense of cautious optimism, unclear how this vote would go. But in a statement on Monday night, she said this, "Virginians watched other states go along with those demands without voter input, and we refuse to let that stand. We responded the right way at the ballot box."

Now, there is no doubt going forward here. Florida is still the last state eyeing this redistricting effort. They could, in fact change their maps as well, trying to add more Republican friendly districts. But it's clear that voters. The excitement and enthusiasm is on the Democratic side.

[05:10:02]

President Trump was at the heart of this message. They called it a MAGA power grab. And clearly, Virginia voters responded in kind.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: All right, lets get us back to the region and the conflict here with peace talks on hold and an indefinite ceasefire.

I want to talk to the regional expert Mehran Kamrava in Qatar? Can you hear me?

MEHRAN KAMRAVA, PROFESSOR OF GOVERNMENT, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY IN QATAR: Yes, I hear you, Becky. Thank you

ANDERSON: Excellent. Good. How would you describe where we stand right now and where this could go?

KAMRAVA: Well, I think were at a very precarious position and it could go either way, really. The Iranians have said they have absolutely no trust in the U.S., and that from their perspective, the United States is preparing for another attack. And, the Americans, of course, don't trust the Iranians. And they are maintaining the blockade of Iranian ports.

So at any moment, things could go south. But, the Pakistanis are doing their level best to ensure that the two sides come to the negotiating table. So we're at a very precarious moment right now.

ANDERSON: Donald Trump describes Tehran's leadership as, quote, seriously fractured. How do you read the internal dynamics in Iranian leadership at this point?

KAMRAVA: I think that's a serious misreading of the Iranian leaderships position and predicament. I think what we've seen is tremendous consistency among the leadership. Of course, the new supreme leader is not as supreme as the previous one, as his father, but nonetheless, the leadership has been quite cohesive. And the -- we've seen this in the conduct of the war and in the conduct of the negotiations.

So I think, President Trump's rhetoric doesn't necessarily represent the reality of Iranian politics right now.

HILL: We seem to be having a number of communications issues. It's Erica Hill with you now. We just lost my colleague Becky Anderson there, joining us, of course, from Abu Dhabi. So as we continue, as we continue the conversation, we are seeing President Trump, of course, posting on Truth Social. He writes, quote, "Iran is collapsing financially. They want the Strait of Hormuz opened immediately, starving for cash, losing $500 million a day." He goes on to say military and police complaining they are not getting paid, SOS in all caps with exclamation points.

What is your assessment when it comes to the U.S. pressure here on Iran through this blockade? And you were getting into this with Becky. But how effective is this going to be in actually bringing Tehran to the table and moving those talks forward?

KAMRAVA: There's no doubt that the Iranian economy is hemorrhaging and suffering a great deal. The private sector is particularly hard hit, and the middle classes are really under tremendous economic pressure before the war started, and now even more so. But I think to assume that this kind of pressure would bring Iran to its knees is kind of not necessarily reflective of reality.

We have seen historically that the Islamic Republic hasn't really yielded to pressures of this kind, and it certainly hasn't behaved, in the intended way when its been threatened. So I'm not sure if President Trump's maximalist demands on Iran, at least insofar as they're presented through the social media, are reflective of the Iranian position. HILL: Which comes back to something that has been discussed, of

course, since the very beginning of the war, which is what is the level of understanding, right, from President Trump about who he is dealing with on the Iranian side?

KAMRAVA: Exactly. The State Department has a very deep bench when it comes to expertise on Iran, but it appears that that deep bench does not get represented at the negotiating table with Iranians.

And the White House, people like, both the president, and, Marco Rubio, but more specifically, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are not necessarily Iran experts. They're not Iran hands, whereas the Iranians come with years, if not decades of experience in negotiating with the European Union, with the Americans.

[05:15:01]

And so, I think there's a -- there's a mismatch of some sort when it comes to the level of expertise at negotiating table.

HILL: Yeah. Another of course, a number of questions that remain even as were talking so much about the U.S. and Iran, about the impact on the Gulf States. Also, of course, the U.K. and France convening military planners from some 30 countries today in London for their discussions. A lot to continue following.

Thank you for rolling with the punches there. Mehran Kamrava joining us from Doha. Thanks again.

Still to come here, the European Union considering a major loan to Ukraine now that Hungary's outgoing prime minister and of course, Putin ally, Viktor Orban, will not be around to veto it. What we know about that plan is ahead.

Plus, Pope Leo wrapping up his trip to Africa with a whirlwind visit to equatorial guinea and another forceful message against corruption and tyranny.

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[05:20:20]

HILL: Pope Leo XIV is preparing to celebrate holy mass in Equatorial Guinea. That will happen shortly. The pontiff, of course, is spending the last days of his Africa tour in the country. We have live pictures for you now, as we are waiting for that mass to begin. Seventy-four percent of the country is actually Catholic. During his visit on Tuesday, Pope Leo urged society to take care of its most vulnerable populations, including those with mental illness. He also met with Equatorial Guinea's president, an authoritarian who has stayed in power for more than four decades and who has been widely accused of corruption.

President Trump is taking part as what's been billed as a week long spiritual celebration of Americas 250th anniversary with a Bible reading, which was recorded in the Oval Office. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The president, along with key cabinet members, joined several people for the event known as America reads the bible. It comes at a complicated time for president Trump and his relationship with American Christians. He has been widely criticized for his public feud that he picked with Pope Leo, and is facing backlash over an AI image he posted depicting himself as Jesus.

The state of Texas can now require public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments. The decision comes after U.S. appeals court ruled the law did not violate First Amendment protections.

Conservative Republican backers, including the Texas attorney general, are hailing the ruling as a major victory for the state and its moral values. That issue, though, now likely headed to the Supreme Court, as critics argue it violates religious freedom and also the separation of church and state.

European officials are discussing a loan of more than $100 billion for Ukraine funds, which have been held up due to a veto from Hungarian leader Viktor Orban. But with he and his party being voted out of power in parliamentary elections this month, things may be changing.

CNN's Clare Sebastian following these developments for us from London.

So where does this funding stand at this moment, Clare?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (AUDIO GAP)

HILL: Clare, I'm really sorry to jump in here, but we are having an issue with Clare's audio coming in and out. We're going to try to get that taken care of.

Still to come here, we also are going to take a closer look at the global oil markets. This, of course, on the heels of President Trump's latest announcement that he plans to now extend the ceasefire and Iran's latest threat against its Gulf neighbors. That's just ahead here.

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[05:27:23]

ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in our Middle East programming headquarters here in Abu Dhabi.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is issuing a warning to Gulf neighbors, according to state media. One commander said that countries helping Iran's enemies, quote, "should say goodbye to oil production in the Middle East region".

Amid that threat and the ceasefire extension, we are watching the impact on the price of oil. You can see where U.S. crude and the global benchmark Brent crude stand right now.

Joining me is the founder and CEO of XAnalysts, Mukesh Sahdev live from New Delhi.

And I want to start by discussing the live oil price for you. Donald Trump extending the ceasefire until, quote, "discussions are concluded one way or the other". This is essentially a frozen conflict with the Strait of Hormuz still closed.

How do you read what is going on in the oil markets at this point?

MUKESH SAHDEV, FOUNDER & CEO, XANALYSTS: Thank you, Becky. Good to be on the show.

I read in three ways. Number one, the indefinite ceasefire is a probably of the fact that to cause pain is not just about Iran. I think the ultimate target is China, and China is holding strong and probably not negotiating. So that's a recognition of that.

It's also on a second point, recognition that us fundamentals on the oil market side are quite strong. If you look at the U.S. data that comes out on a weekly basis, it's really remarkable to see strong stock builds, strong refinery runs. So U.S. oil fundamentals and what U.S. has been doing in sort of a preparation has been strong.

So in that sense I believe that, the third point I would add is that given these two adversaries are on a strong point, this indefinite ceasefire is actually bullish because every day, the pain for Asia and the economy is dependent on the Middle East is actually increasing. And more supply chain disruptions, forced measures will be there.

ANDERSON: I want to just pick up on, on your second point there, I think its really interesting, and you've said before that the deal is not Iran-U.S. the deal is U.S. and China, and you've gone on to explain in the past that you think what we will see next month in Beijing, mid-May will be even more important than what we are expecting to see in Islamabad at some point soon.

What do you mean by that?

SAHDEV: So, Becky, I think now the numbers are clearly telling that story.