Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are in Doha, Qatar, as of Monday for negotiations with neighboring states in the service of finalizing a peace agreement with the United States.
The visit follows a series of public statements from President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio affirming that Tehran and Washington have made progress in their negotiations towards peace. Both have cautioned that the two sides still disagree sharply on core issues remaining unresolved and that talks will take time to yield results, but the tone of their remarks indicated an optimism absent from previous attempts at ending the conflict.
President Trump announced Operation Epic Fury in February, meant to eliminate Iran’s ability to pose a threat to its neighbors through its missile and drone programs. On February 28, Trump announced that American strikes had killed the longtime dictator of Iran, “supreme leader” Ali Khamenei, and in the ensuing months the governments of America and Israel both confirmed the killing of dozens of high-ranking Iranian officials. In response, Iran’s terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched bombing campaigns against unrelated Gulf Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, and Qatar, among others. Iran is the world’s most prolific state sponsor of terrorism, bankrolling to the tune of millions of dollars organizations such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis in Yemen.
The military conflict is currently on hold after President Trump announced an indefinite ceasefire in April to allow space for negotiations to establish a permanent peace. While disrupted occasionally by what President Trump has referred to as “love taps,” the ceasefire has largely held. The major exception has been disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, where the IRGC has established a blockade preventing the free flow of civilian ships, significantly damaging global commerce. The U.S. Navy established a blockade of only Iranian ships passing through the Strait in response to the Iranian piracy campaign, intended to pressure Iran to once again allow free transit in the critical commercial byway.
The Emirati newspaper The National reported on Monday that the first step towards a peace agreement is expected to be a memorandum of understanding ending active conflict. Following that stage, the White House is seeking an agreement that ensures an end to Iran’s illicit nuclear program and the prevention of the Iranian regime obtaining a nuclear weapon. The Iranian regime, meanwhile, is seeking the lifting of all sanctions on the country and unfreezing of assets around the world frozen in response to its decades of support for terrorism.
Specifically, The National listed Iran as demanding maintained control of the Strait of Hormuz, the unfreezing of assets, and a guarantee of no further American military action during talks. The Americans are reportedly seeking full freedom of navigation in the Strait and limits to Iranian nuclear development, including halting uranium enrichment and verification and inspections to ensure that Iran complies with the deal. Currently, Iran is believed to be enriching uranium at a rate incompatible with any known civilian use, but has blocked the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) from inspecting its nuclear sites, making verification impossible.
The state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) confirmed on Monday that Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who has taken on a protagonist role in the talks, is currently in the capital of Qatar for “ongoing diplomatic efforts,” reportedly joining Foreign Minister Araghchi.
“During the visit on Monday, senior Iranian officials are set to hold consultations with Qatari officials on various aspects related to negotiations aimed at halting the war,” IRNA reported.
The independent outlet Iran International reported on Sunday that, according to anonymous sources, the Iranian negotiators are trying to focus talks in Qatar on unfreezing about $12 billion in Iranian assets held in Qatar.
“According to the source, the release of these specific funds in Qatar is a strict precondition for the initial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) stage,” the outlet claimed. “Tehran’s broader negotiating position is that all of its frozen assets globally must be unfrozen and fully released as part of any eventual comprehensive agreement, according to the source.”
The visit to Qatar follows public comments by President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is subordinate to missing “supreme leader” Mojtaba Khamenei, that Iran is open to negotiating but allegedly constrained by “excessive” American demands. Pezeshkian claimed on Sunday that his government was “ready” to indicate it was not pursuing nuclear weapons, without clarifying how. Iranian officials have for years claimed that they are not seeking nuclear weapons and that late dictator Khamenei issued a fatwa, or edict, banning them, but no public evidence exists that the fatwa is real.
IRNA quoted Pezeshkian on Monday as stating that Iran was negotiating, but “will under no circumstances submit to pressures and excessive demands,” speaking before Iranian officials. The president typically adopts a more strident tone for internal communications and a more conciliatory one on international platforms such as Twitter.
During a regular briefing on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei offered extensive comments on the alleged negotiations, insisting that ending the Iranian nuclear program is not a primary discussion point in early stages.
“The negotiators and the diplomatic apparatus are part of the state structure and have clearly defined responsibilities in the diplomatic arena. At present, the focus of the negotiations is on ending the war, and at this stage we are not discussing the details of the nuclear issue,” IRNA quoted him as saying.
Baqaei nonetheless conceded, “It is fair to say that we have reached understandings on many issues. But whether this means an agreement is imminent is something no one can claim at this stage.”
He went on to demand European sanctions on the United States.
President Trump expressed optimism on Sunday in remarks posted to his website, Truth Social, in which he insisted that his negotiating team is working on an improved agreement to replace the failed Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
“The negotiations are proceeding in an orderly and constructive manner, and I have informed my representatives not to rush into a deal in that time is on our side,” Trump wrote. “The Blockade will remain in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified, and signed. Both sides must take their time and get it right. There can be no mistakes!”
“Our relationship with Iran is becoming a much more professional and productive one,” he added. “They must understand, however, that they cannot develop or procure a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb.”
Secretary of State Rubio, during an ongoing visit to India, told reporters that “some progress” had occurred in the Iran negotiations.
“We think we’ve made some progress on the outline of something that, if it works, could give us that outcome,” Rubio said, denying rumors that President Trump would “somehow agree to a deal that ultimately winds up putting Iran in a stronger position when it comes to nuclear ambitions.”
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