Iran to US: Enjoy the gas prices now, soon you will miss them

JAKARTA - The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf reminded the United States that fuel prices could potentially soar higher amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran.

The warning was delivered by Qalibaf through a post on the X platform on Sunday, April 12, quoted from Anadolu, Monday, April 13.

"Enjoy the current gasoline prices. With the so-called 'blockade', soon you will miss the gasoline price at the level of 4-5 US dollars," wrote Qalibaf.

In the upload, he also attached a screenshot showing the price of gasoline at a filling station near the White House was in the range of US$4.10 to US$5.80 per gallon, or around Rp70 thousand to Rp99 thousand.

Qalibaf, who also led the Iranian delegation in talks with the United States in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday, April 11, seemed to be responding to a statement by US President Donald Trump.

Previously, Trump told Fox News that oil and gasoline prices could remain high until the November midterm elections due to the ongoing US-Israeli war with Iran.

"It could be, or the same, or maybe a little higher; but it should be more or less the same," Trump said.

Qalibaf's post came ahead of an announcement by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) that it would begin blocking all maritime traffic entering and leaving Iranian ports starting Monday.

The latest development comes after the latest round of talks between Iran and the US in Islamabad ended without an agreement.

The negotiations mediated by Pakistan took place in several rounds of discussions and exchange of proposals, but have not produced any significant breakthrough.

Both sides left Islamabad with a number of key differences still unresolved, though both signaled that the diplomatic track would continue.

The talks in Islamabad are part of a broader effort to maintain a still fragile two-week ceasefire, to end the US-Israeli war against Iran that has been going on since February 28.