A senior Iranian delegation, including Tehran’s chief nuclear negotiator and the governor of the central bank, arrived in Qatar on Monday for negotiations focused on a possible understanding with the United States and the unfreezing of Iranian funds held overseas.
The delegation’s visit to Doha comes amid renewed diplomatic efforts to reduce tensions between Tehran and Washington following months of regional instability and heightened confrontation linked to Iran’s nuclear activities and security in the Gulf.
This marked the first senior Iranian visit to the region since the start of the Middle East war, which saw Tehran launch thousands of drones and missiles across the Gulf – including at Qatar.
It also signaled Qatar's growing role in the talks, so far dominated by mediator Pakistan.
"Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Doha earlier today for talks on ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the conflict," a source briefed on the matter told AFP, requesting anonymity.
The visit will focus, the source added, "on issues relating to the Strait (of Hormuz) and highly enriched uranium. The Central Bank governor is part of the delegation to discuss the issue of frozen funds, which is addressed in the MoU as part of an eventual final deal".
Iranian media, including Tasnim and Fars news agencies, also said the delegation included Araghchi and Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati.
Iran's official news agency IRNA said the visit was "part of the diplomatic process" and that the delegation would meet with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
The trip was intended to assess whether Washington was serious before Iran accepts a truce deal, IRNA said.
"It appears that some American commitments under this agreement will be implemented with Doha's assistance," it said.
The visit was also meant to "ascertain Qatar's readiness to provide support" with regard to U.S. pledges, it added.
In 2023, $6 billion of frozen Iranian funds from South Korean banks were parked in Qatar pending the release of five American citizens held by Iran.
The funds were never released as ties soured between Washington and Tehran after Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
According to Fars, Washington agreed to release part of Tehran's funds frozen abroad under international sanctions and to end its naval blockade of ships traveling to and from Iranian ports in exchange for ending the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Pakistan has so far been a main mediator in talks aimed at ending the war and fully reopening the vital waterway.
But in recent weeks, Qatar, which has mediated between Iran and the United States in the past, appears to have taken on a larger role.
Earlier this month, Sheikh Mohammed held meetings with top U.S. diplomat Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance in the United States to push for diplomacy.
Qatar, a key Gaza mediator traditionally close to both the U.S. and Iran, was itself drawn into the previous round of conflict.
On June 23, Iran targeted al-Udeid base in Qatar, the biggest U.S. installation in the Middle East, in retaliation for U.S. strikes on nuclear facilities.
