DOHA/DUBAI, July 1: Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani has met United States envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in Doha as attempts are made to restart direct talks between Tehran and Washington.
The US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on June 17, extending their ceasefire by 60 days, during which they agreed to continue more detailed negotiations on their differences �" with the future of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s frozen assets, long-term sanctions relief and Tehran’s nuclear programme among the issues on the table.
But the two weeks since have seen new tensions rise between the US and Iran over the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, US bombing of Iran, Iranian attacks on US military assets in Kuwait and Bahrain, and continuing Israeli assaults in Lebanon.
And while Washington has said it will hold direct negotiations with Tehran in Doha, the latter has denied this.
Here is the latest on the negotiations:
US Vice President JD Vance told Fox News that the Trump administration was in a “great position” regardless of how the talks pan out.
The US “obviously” wants the talks to succeed, Vance said, but added that his country was “still in a much stronger position” than Iran even if they fail. He insisted that Tehran’s nuclear programme and military have been “destroyed”, and warned that Trump has made clear that any Iranian attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz would prompt a US military response.
Vance again said Iran would be “permanently transformed” if negotiations aimed at securing a lasting settlement are successful.
The US vice president also said technical talks with Iran are ongoing on specific points included in the MoU.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal has reported that Trump, when presented recently with a full range of options to restart the war on Iran, told his advisers that he preferred to give diplomacy a chance, and was willing to extend the 60-day truce if needed for discussions on Iran’s nuclear programme.-AL JAZEERA
