Qatar’s foreign minister met with his Iranian counterpart, according to Iranian state media, as Tehran and Washington look to be at an impasse over the fate of talks to revive a 2015 nuclear deal.
After the United Nations atomic watchdog’s latest reports criticized Iran, Tehran warned Western states from rebuking it at the International Atomic Energy Agency, while US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said time was running out to restore the pact with international powers.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Qatar’s foreign minister, was in Tehran days after Blinken visited the Gulf Arab state, which has strong ties with Iran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian called for stronger trade ties with Sheikh Mohammed and reaffirmed Tehran’s support for an Afghan administration that includes all factions, according to Iranian official media, without mentioning the nuclear talks.
Since President Ebrahim Raisi, an anti-Western hardliner, assumed office on August 5, indirect conversations between US President Joe Biden’s administration and Iran on how both nations could return to compliance with the accord have not resumed.
Following the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Qatar has emerged as the principal mediator between the Taliban, who rushed into Kabul on August 15, and Western governments.
