US Envoys Meet Qatari Mediators on Iran Talks, Direct Meetings Ruled Out

Top US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were in Doha on Tuesday for meetings with Qatari mediators on negotiations with Iran, but both Qatar and Tehran said there would be no direct or high-level meetings between US and Iranian officials, contradicting US President Donald Trump's claim a day earlier that the two sides would meet.

The visit by Steve Witkoff, Trump's special Middle East envoy, and Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, comes days after military exchanges in and around the Persian Gulf complicated efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global shipping route.

Earlier, Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said the US delegation would not meet Iranian officials directly in Doha. "The envoys won't be having direct negotiations with Iranian diplomats while in Qatar's capital, Doha," Al-Ansari said, adding that mediators would instead act as intermediaries and that the discussions "won't include any high-level officials."

Iran is also sending a delegation to Doha this week. However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei ruled out any direct engagement with Washington. "Basically, we have no plans to meet with the American side at any level in the next few days," Baghaei said during a press briefing, adding that the Doha discussions would be held exclusively with Qatari officials to implement parts of the existing memorandum of understanding, including the release of Iran's frozen assets.

Qatar also confirmed mediators would shuttle messages between the two sides rather than facilitate face-to-face talks. Such indirect negotiations have happened in the past between Iran and the US.

"What will be done in Doha tomorrow is a discussion on the implementation of clauses of the memorandum of understanding, including the release of Iran's frozen assets, which is with the Qatari side," Baghaei said.

According to the interim agreement reached earlier this month, Iran agreed to dilute its stockpile of enriched uranium, while the United States eased oil sanctions, backed free navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and set a 60-day timeline for negotiating a broader agreement.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday that Qatar planned to release $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets. A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations, confirmed the amount, saying the funds would be used to purchase US food products for the Iranian people.

However, Al-Ansari said the funds had not yet been transferred. Speaking at a separate briefing, he said the release would proceed "according to the advancement of negotiations," indicating that any transfer remained contingent on diplomatic progress.