Uncertainty looms over US-Iran talks in Doha; here’s what we know

Talks between the United States and Iran in Doha appear uncertain as both sides gave conflicting accounts of whether they would meet in Qatar this week. This comes amid missile and drone exchanges over the weekend that tested an interim ceasefire aimed at ending a four-month-old war.

Washington and Tehran separately announced the dispatch of delegations to Doha. 

However, Iran stated on Monday that no meeting with the American side had been scheduled in the coming days. This uncertainty has raised doubts over the June 17 accord, which set a 60-day period to implement a 14-point memorandum of understanding, extend an April ceasefire, discuss Iran's nuclear programme, and negotiate a permanent truce.

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The disagreement over talks coincides with renewed hostilities around the Strait of Hormuz, disruption to oil flows, and increasing political pressure on US President Donald Trump ahead of November's congressional elections. Trump said Iran had requested a meeting and that talks were planned for Tuesday in Doha. He announced on Truth Social that the meeting would take place and confirmed that his son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff would lead the US team.

Trump described the meeting as potentially important and stated that the US was winning militarily. He reiterated that Iran must be stopped from producing a nuclear weapon. 

Meanwhile, Iran denied any bilateral meeting had been arranged. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran's technical delegation would visit Qatar but that the trip was unrelated to the American delegation. He added that no negotiation meetings with the US would occur in the coming days.

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Baghaei explained that the Iranian delegation's visit was to follow up on the memorandum of understanding's implementation, including Article 11. Formal negotiations for a final agreement had not yet begun, and talks on a final agreement could start only after certain articles had been implemented. Iran's deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the next round of negotiations would happen only after conditions were met and an agreement on date and location was reached.

At the same time, a senior Iranian official mentioned a meeting in Doha on Tuesday focused on managing the Strait of Hormuz and reducing tensions, differing from previous technical talks held in Switzerland. Another official said technical teams from the U.S. and Iran were expected to meet separately with Qatari and Pakistani mediators on Wednesday.

Progress under the June 17 understanding has been slow, with both sides accusing each other of violating terms.