US-Iran talks hopes rise as strike pause reaches third day
Qatar and Pakistan are trying to restart US-Iran diplomacy as Washington and Tehran keep a fragile pause in attacks.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
3 min read
Mediators are trying to restart US Iran talks after Washington and Tehran kept a pause in direct hostilities for a third day, Al Jazeera and The Associated Press reported. The lull has opened a narrow diplomatic window after a nearly two-week escalation that hit regional bases, shipping and energy routes.
Middle East officials, speaking anonymously to AP because the discussions are private, said Qatar and Pakistan are leading efforts to narrow differences between the United States and Iran. The officials said messages are still moving between the sides, though public comments from Washington and Tehran show they disagree on whether negotiations have resumed.
Are the US and Iran holding talks?
US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that Iran had sought a meeting “through their surrogates and directly” and said, “We’re talking with Iran right now.” Trump also said the discussions were “good talks,” while warning that Iran would face consequences if it failed to reach an agreement.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry rejected the idea that Tehran had asked to restart peace talks. A ministry spokesman said mediators may pass along messages from the American side, but said there are no direct negotiations, according to Al Jazeera.
The US halted attacks on Saturday after striking Iranian coastal areas and infrastructure, Al Jazeera reported. The escalation began after Iran fired on ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil shipments.
Iran answered the US strikes with missile and drone attacks on countries in the region that host American forces, according to Al Jazeera and AP. Those attacks killed at least three service members at a base in Jordan and one in Iraq. Al Jazeera also reported drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Iraq, raising concerns that Iran or allied armed groups were testing Washington’s new position.
Asked about reports that interceptor shortages helped drive the US pause, Trump said the United States has “a lot of ammunition, different types.” He said Patriot interceptors are being produced as Washington builds its stocks.
What is blocking a wider deal?
Al Jazeera correspondent Osama Bin Javaid reported from Doha that mediators are trying to bring both sides back to a memorandum of understanding signed in mid-June. That accord stopped earlier fighting before this month’s renewed escalation, but the sides have since differed over what it requires.
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the central disputes. The narrow waterway is a major passage for global energy shipments, and Al Jazeera reported that Tehran wants vessels to use a designated lane closer to Iranian shores rather than a southern lane nearer Oman.
Muscat has proposed a system under which countries would pay a voluntary toll to pass through the strait, according to Al Jazeera. Iran wants the toll to be required, though Bin Javaid reported that Tehran is open to discussing whether payments would be structured as entry fees, exit fees or charges for services provided by Iran and Oman.
US Central Command said Monday that it had redirected 17 commercial vessels transiting the strait. CENTCOM also said it had disabled two other vessels and boarded two more as part of efforts to enforce Washington’s blockade on Iran.
After the memorandum of understanding broke down, Washington revoked a waiver that had allowed Iranian oil sales and imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, according to Al Jazeera. The continued pause has raised expectations of diplomacy, but the attacks around the region and the dispute over Hormuz show how quickly the situation could shift again.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.