IRAN on Monday dismissed claims by United States President Donald Trump that fresh talks between Tehran and Washington would take place in Doha on Tuesday, insisting that no meetings with US officials have been scheduled in the coming days.
The clarification came as Iran’s Foreign Ministry said an Iranian technical delegation would travel to Qatar this week, stressing that the visit has no connection with any negotiations involving the United States.
Speaking on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei rejected reports of imminent talks between the two countries.
“No talks between Iran and the United States are scheduled in the coming days,” Baghaei said.
According to Iran’s Foreign Ministry, the delegation heading to Doha will focus solely on “implementing the provisions of the memorandum of understanding” and will not hold discussions with US representatives, Al Jazeera reported.
Iran’s official IRNA news agency also quoted the ministry as saying that the visit by US officials to Qatar “has no connection to the visit of the Iranian delegation.”
Providing further clarification, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, said no technical working group meetings are planned this week under the framework of the 14-point Memorandum of Understanding aimed at ending the conflict in West Asia.
“No technical working group meetings are scheduled for this week,” Gharibabadi said while responding to media enquiries, according to IRIB.
He explained that although consultations with Qatar were continuing in the normal course of diplomatic engagements, particularly regarding the implementation of commitments by the other party, reports suggesting that technical working group discussions were currently taking place in Doha could not be verified.
“Although consultations with Qatar, including regarding the follow-up on the implementation of the other party’s commitments, are ongoing as usual, some media reports that technical working group discussions are being held in Doha cannot be confirmed,” he said.
Gharibabadi added that the first round of technical talks would only be held after the necessary conditions had been met and once all parties reached an agreement on the date and venue.
Meanwhile, Qatar has continued to play a central mediating role in diplomatic engagements between Tehran and Washington, serving as one of the principal intermediaries in negotiations between the two countries.
