A Qatari delegation visited Tehran
on Thursday to coordinate with Washington on de-escalating hostilities and
resuming the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, signed June 17 after months
of indirect talks.
The pact aimed to halt fighting,
reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping, provide Iran partial sanctions relief,
and start broader nuclear discussions, but mutual strikes this week—U.S. hits
on over 80 Iranian sites and Iran's retaliation on bases in Bahrain and Kuwait—shattered
the ceasefire.
President Trump called Iranian
leaders liars yet approved continued negotiations, while Iran denies seeking
direct talks and relies on mediators like Qatar and Pakistan to convey its
positions. Oil markets swung wildly as diplomats push to bridge the gap before
the MOU's timeline fully expires.