U.S., Iran talks conclude in Doha, focused on Strait
By Andrew Mills, Parisa Hafezi and Bo Erickson
DOHA/DUBAI/WASHINGTON, July 1 (Reuters) – Iran and the United States wrapped up a series of indirect talks on Wednesday with no sign they are making progress toward a lasting peace, focusing instead on issues they were supposed to have resolved two weeks ago.
Sources said negotiators from the two countries spent two days in Doha discussing maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and financial incentives for Iran, two key pillars of the initial agreement they signed in June, rather than more difficult issues that the framework should resolve.
In Washington, US President Donald Trump said the two sides were making progress on possible limits on Iran’s nuclear program; this was the main reason he started the war in February. “The process of denuclearizing Iran is progressing well,” he told reporters. “They had very good meetings, we’ll see.”
However, sources said that the nuclear program was not on the agenda during the technical talks.
US Vice President JD Vance said that this issue would be discussed later. “Obviously we are concerned about the nuclear issue, we will start talking about it,” he told reporters.
The two sides did not meet face to face, but instead interacted separately with Qatari and Pakistani mediators.
According to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and senior US envoy Steve Witkoff, who were sent to the region for what the White House described as “high-level” meetings, did not attend the sessions.
The leader of the Iranian delegation, Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Garibabadi, said that the talks were completed. Neither side said they had managed to resolve their differences.
WHO CONTROLS THE THROAT?
The first deal calls for Iran and the United States to allow shipping to resume through the Strait of Hormuz, which handled a fifth of global oil and liquid natural gas before the war. Although traffic has partially resumed, the status of the strategic waterway remains uncertain and the two countries exchanged attacks last weekend following an Iranian attack on a cargo ship.
Iran is determined to have international recognition of its control over the strait, even if it has to do so by force, two senior Iranian sources said, and has repeatedly said it will consider shipping fees starting in mid-August, after the free period outlined in the initial agreement expires.
Trump downplayed the possibility of a return to all-out war with Iran. “I think they’ve come a long way,” he said.
While oil prices fell to their lowest level in the last four months after Trump’s statements, analysts lowered their price forecasts for the first time since the start of the war.
A foreign container ship ran aground in shallow waters outside the shipping route designated by Iranian authorities, Iranian state media said on Wednesday.
“Hormuz continues to reopen but is uneven, unpredictable and not entirely transparent,” said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.
Many European countries have offered to help clear mines in the Bosphorus, but German defense minister Boris Pistorius said he did not expect his country to participate, citing Iran’s reluctance to cooperate with other countries.
(Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Andy Sullivan, Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
