DOHA: Qatar is stepping up diplomatic efforts to help end the eight-month war between the United States and Iran, with both sides still divided over the terms of a possible deal, Qatari officials said on Tuesday.
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said Doha was exchanging messages between Washington and Tehran and working to establish common ground for an agreement that could limit the conflict’s wider impact.
US and Iranian officials separately held discussions with Qatari mediators on Monday, although it was unclear whether further contacts took place on Tuesday.
Negotiations intensified during last week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York but have so far failed to produce an agreement on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil shipments.
US President Donald Trump said Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon and repeated that Washington had offered Tehran nothing in return for ending the conflict.
Trump also denied reports that his administration was prepared to offer sanctions relief and release frozen Iranian funds as part of a potential agreement.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran was prepared to negotiate over its nuclear programme and other issues but would not accept what he described as “bullying or coercion.”
Iran proposes seven-day timeline to reopen Strait of Hormuz
Iran presented a peace proposal during the UN General Assembly that would establish a seven-day countdown toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz alongside a pause in fighting.
Trump rejected the proposal on Saturday, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Washington had not formally communicated its rejection through mediators.
The conflict has caused thousands of deaths and disrupted global energy supplies. Restrictions on tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz have contributed to higher energy prices and concerns over further supply disruptions.
Oil prices fell 2.5% on Tuesday as markets responded to signs of recovering crude exports from the Middle East, although prices remained on track for monthly gains.
The United States also announced that it would offer energy companies loans of up to 40 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Washington separately imposed sanctions on 10 individuals and entities, including entities based in China, Hong Kong and Pakistan, alleging that they assisted Iran in procuring weapons and related components.