Qatar Offers To Help Resolve Iran-US Stalled Nuclear Talks

The Emir of Qatar expressed hope Friday that an agreement between the United States and Iran could be achieved, saying Doha is ready to help resolve the conflict.

Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani told a press conference in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, "We hope there will be an agreement between the parties to Iran nuclear agreement”.

Qatar’s ruler visited Tehran last week and held meetings with President Ebrahim Raisi and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. His visit coincided with the presence of EU coordinator of the nuclear talks, Enrique Mora, in Tehran.

Most of Iran's official and semi-official media had downplayed or completely excluded any mention of possible mediation in the nuclear talks by the Emir and instead focused on reporting the Iranian leader and president's remarks about regional issues and Israel.

Earlier in the week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Qatari foreign minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani about Iran, thanking his counterpart for “Qatar’s constructive role in efforts to resolve issues with Iran” as well as its diplomatic assistance with Afghanistan.

Talks in Vienna since April 2021 had reached a critical stage by mid-March when diplomats announced a pause and returned to their capitals.

A major disagreement reportedly remains the US listing Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) as a ‘foreign terrorist organization’ while Iran has also refused to drop calls for retribution for the US killing IRGC general Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020.