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US, Iran Pause Strikes, Differ on Talks06/30 06:11
The United States and Iran on Monday separately announced they will send
delegations to Qatar this week, though Tehran insisted it has not agreed to
meet with the U.S. "at any level" after attacks across the Persian Gulf over
the weekend challenged negotiations to end the war.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- The United States and Iran on Monday
separately announced they will send delegations to Qatar this week, though
Tehran insisted it has not agreed to meet with the U.S. "at any level" after
attacks across the Persian Gulf over the weekend challenged negotiations to end
the war.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the Islamic Republic had requested a
meeting with U.S. counterparts and that they planned to convene Tuesday in
Doha, Qatar.
But one of Iran's senior negotiators denied talks had been scheduled. And
the spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry said Tehran was sending its
delegation to Qatar, a key mediator in the negotiations, to discuss terms of
the interim deal without involving the U.S.
Hostilities mounted in recent days in the Strait of Hormuz, through which a
fifth of the world's oil had been shipped before war began. After four days of
trading strikes, both sides appeared to pause their attacks Monday.
The U.S. and Iran agreed to an interim deal earlier this month that calls
for Tehran to dilute its stockpile of enriched uranium. It also waives
U.S.-backed oil sanctions on the country, calls for free traffic through the
Strait of Hormuz and gives each side 60 days to hammer out broader agreements.
Confusion mounts over next round of Iran-US talks
After Trump said Monday morning on social media that the U.S. and Iran
planned to meet, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News'
"Fox & Friends" that special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the
president's son-in-law, were flying to Qatar.
Pakistan, also a key mediator, had said talks between Iran and the U.S.
would resume Tuesday.
But Kazem Gharibabadi, a senior negotiator for Iran, said in comments
published by Iranian state media that no talks had been confirmed. And Esmail
Baghaei, spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry, said that its delegation was
traveling to Qatar this week to discuss the planned release of frozen Iranian
assets and other issues related to the deal.
"There are no negotiation meetings with the U.S. side at any level scheduled
in the coming days," Baghaei said.
However, that left open the possibility messages being passed to the Qataris
between the two sides.
Increased tension in waterway vital to world energy supplies
During the war that began Feb. 28, Iran's attacks and threats stopped cargo
ships and tankers from moving through the Strait of Hormuz, creating a global
energy crisis.
In recent days, Iran has twice attacked vessels in the strait -- including a
tanker filled with Qatari crude -- following efforts to open Oman's territorial
waters to both inbound and outbound traffic from the Persian Gulf.
The attacks drew retaliatory American airstrikes and raised concerns that
negotiations to reach a formal end to the war could be disrupted. Iran launched
drone and missile attacks targeting Bahrain and Kuwait on Sunday.
The strait has long been considered an international waterway despite being
in Iran and Oman's territorial waters.
The Trump administration was operating Monday on the understanding that the
U.S. and Iran are standing down after the recent back-and-forth strikes and
that vessels can move freely through the Strait of Hormuz, said a U.S. official
who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations.
Iran's president, U.S. official say $6 billion coming to Iran
The U.S. official also said that Qatar planned to release $6 billion in
frozen Iranian assets that would be used to purchase U.S. food products for the
Iranian people.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had announced the expected release of
funds earlier Monday in comments published by the state-run IRNA news agency.
Pezeshkian, a reformist within Iran's theocracy, is the highest-ranking
official within Iran to reference the release of the funds held by Qatar.
Oman, Iran discuss possible fees for ships transiting the strait
Oman's foreign minister, Badr al-Busaidi, said Monday that Oman and Iran are
considering charging service-related fees for commercial ships transiting the
Strait of Hormuz.
Al-Busaidi said services could include water safety measures, pollution
prevention, navigational assistance and preparedness for incidents such as
fires. He told Radio Monte Carlo that Oman does not support imposing transit
fees on ships.
"This is internationally forbidden," he said, "and we are abiding by these
rules."
But there had never been any fees charged in the strait -- and other Gulf
Arab states and the U.S. firmly oppose the imposition of any costs for transit.
Iran and France clash over clearing mines from strait
An Iranian official warned France against "provocations" Monday after French
President Emmanuel Macron posted on X that France and others were coordinating
efforts to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz.
Kazem Gharibabadi, an Iranian deputy foreign minister, said on X that under
the interim deal "demining is carried out solely by Iran and by no other
country."
Macron's post came after he greeted Sultan Haitham bin Tariq of Oman ahead
of high-level diplomatic talks in Paris.
Lebanon's president says it will deploy troops as part of deal with Israel
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun separately said Monday that Lebanon is
determined to deploy troops along its entire southern border as part of a
framework agreement with Israel signed Friday. He made the remark while meeting
with Adm. Brad Cooper, the top U.S. military commander in the Middle East.
The deal was rejected by the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group, which
triggered the latest war with Israel on March 2 when it fired rockets across
Lebanon's southern border and into northern Israel.
The Israel-Lebanon deal calls for Hezbollah to be disarmed before Israel
will withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon. Israel agreed to withdraw
initially from a couple of "pilot zones" where the Lebanese army would then
deploy, but no details have been shared about how that will work in practice.
Hezbollah officials have warned that attempts to implement the plan could
lead to civil war.
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