Monica Ricks

News when you want it with Bloomberg News Now.

I'm Monica Ricks.

Vice President J.D.

Vance has arrived in Islamabad and will be leading a U.S.

delegation in high-stakes ceasefire talks with Iran.

President Trump wished him luck and says the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened fairly soon.

Trump speaking to reporters yesterday at Joint Base Andrews.

Special U.S.

Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are with Vance now for negotiations.

But Trump has warned the U.S.

will resume military action with even more intensity if a deal isn't reached.

Meantime, U.S.

intelligence indicates that China is now preparing to provide Iran with air defense systems in a matter of weeks.

CNN reports Beijing is expected to ship surface-to-air missiles known as manned portable air defense systems to Iran, which can be operated by one person and are easy to transport, conceal and use.

But a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington has denied those allegations, saying China has never provided weapons to any party to the conflict.

Traffic remains at a relative standstill in the Strait of Hormuz as peace talks get underway, but the United Nations says it's ready to move ships the second it gets the green light via ceasefire.

Arsenio Dominguez is Secretary General of the UN's International Maritime Organization.

IMO Secretary General Arsenio Dominguez on Bloomberg this weekend.

He says the U.N.

's also working on getting confirmation of possible mines in the Strait, but says that can't be done safely till the conflict ends.