US Envoys Arrive in Doha for Mediator Talks Without Iranian Officials]

On Sunday night, a US official announced that both sides would “stand down for now”, allowing vessels to “move freely” in and around the strait. Technical talks were also set to “continue on all areas of the MoU”.

The following day, Iran’s deputy foreign minister and lead technical negotiator, Kazem Gharibabadi, denied reports of planned technical talks scheduled for that week.

In response, US President Donald Trump stated that Iran had requested a meeting in Qatar’s capital on Tuesday, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirming that envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would travel to Doha for “high-level meetings”.

Tuesday saw Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman announce that the two US envoys had arrived in Doha for discussions with mediators, explicitly excluding Iranian officials.

“The talks will address all regional issues of concern, including the negotiations with Iran, as well as Lebanon and other regional matters,” he said. “They are not here for direct negotiations with the Iranians or related meetings.”

He further noted that, to the best of his knowledge, no direct meetings between the parties were scheduled in the coming days.

Ansari confirmed that technical talks between lower-ranking officials were continuing and could later be elevated to senior level. “We have a track on the nuclear side, a track on economic and state performance issues, and a track on security and regional security,” he added.

He also indicated that the release of $6 billion of the $12 billion in frozen Iranian assets held in Qatar was contingent on progress in US-Iran talks that had not yet occurred.

Iran’s president countered on Monday that the steps to unfreeze the funds were “underway”.

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