US envoys reach Qatar for Iran talks as Hormuz shipping deal hangs in balance

Dubai,UPDATED: Jun 30, 2026 21:58 IST

Two US envoys arrived in Qatar on Tuesday for talks with mediators on implementing an initial deal aimed at ending the war, as Washington and Tehran try to keep negotiations on track after fresh tensions in the Persian Gulf. The visit came after a weekend of crossfire linked to efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping traffic.

Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump's special Middle East envoy, and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, travelled to Doha for the discussions. Qatar said the talks would not involve direct negotiations between the US team and Iranian diplomats, and would instead be handled through mediators.

Majed al-Ansari, a spokesman for Qatar's Foreign Ministry, said the envoys would not hold direct talks with the Iranian side in Doha. He said mediators were for now acting as go-betweens and that the talks would not include any high-level officials. The US and Iran have held indirect negotiations before, but the previous two rounds collapsed and preceded the 12-day war Israel launched against Iran in 2025 and this year's war, launched jointly by the US and Iran on February 28.

Iran is also sending a delegation to Qatar this week. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on Tuesday that Iran had no plans for a meeting with the American side at any level in the coming days. "What will take place in Doha tomorrow is a discussion with the Qatari side about implementing parts of the memorandum of understanding, including the release of Iran's blocked assets," Baghaei told journalists at his briefing. The two sides could still exchange messages through Qatari mediators.

The US and Iran agreed to an interim deal earlier this month under which Tehran would dilute its stockpile of enriched uranium. The agreement also waives US-backed oil sanctions on Iran, calls for free traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and gives both sides 60 days to work out broader agreements. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday that Qatar planned to release USD 6 billion in frozen Iranian assets. A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations, confirmed the amount and said the money would be used to buy US food products for the Iranian people.

Before the war began, a fifth of the world's oil moved through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's attacks and threats halted the movement of cargo ships and tankers through the waterway, triggering a global energy crisis. The strait has long been regarded as an international waterway, even though it lies within the territorial waters of Iran and Oman.

Last week, both sides traded strikes as efforts were under way to open Oman's territorial waters in the strait to both inbound and outbound shipping from the Persian Gulf, raising fears that negotiations to formally end the war could be disrupted. Iran twice attacked vessels in the strait, including a tanker carrying Qatari crude, prompting retaliatory American airstrikes. Iran also launched drone and missile attacks targeting Bahrain and Kuwait on Sunday. The talks in Doha are now focused on keeping the interim deal moving, including the release of assets and the reopening of the key shipping route.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends