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Negotiators for the United States and Iran convened for indirect talks in Doha, Qatar, earlier this week to continue discussing the finer details of last month’s memorandum of understanding that extended the current ceasefire. President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday that discussions had come a long way and characterized the latest meetings positively. Iran’s denuclearization is moving along well, he said.
The indirect meetings, facilitated by Qatar and Pakistan, concluded on Thursday with positive progress around the peace memorandum, according to a joint Thursday statement from Pakistan and Qatar. Discussions would restart next week at the earliest, after the funeral processions for Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, killed during a U.S. airstrike earlier this year. The funeral events are scheduled to begin in Tehran this Saturday and conclude with his burial in Mashhad on Thursday, July 9.
Vice President J.D. Vance told reporters on Wednesday that negotiation discussions currently centered on the Strait of Hormuz. It’s heading in a great direction, and negotiators expect to keep making progress, Vance said. It’s still very early in the talks, and nuclear issues have just started to be discussed, he added.
What has Iran said? Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi released a Wednesday statement underscoring what he described as Trump’s commitment to controlling Israel’s strikes on Iran. If Israel ignores its master, Iran will school them, he wrote.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei also released a Thursday statement questioning the authenticity of America’s desire for peace overseas in Asia. Countries of West Asia must remain vigilant and draw lessons from America’s recent military aggression that broke the Middle East’s peace and security, he wrote.