The discussions were scheduled to continue in Doha on Saturday, with Qatar maintaining contact with the White House during the session. Mediators were pressing both sides to accept reciprocal steps over several days before returning to broader negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program and other disputes.
The central disagreement was over which side should move first. Washington demanded nuclear concessions before talks resumed, while Tehran sought the lifting of a U.S. Naval blockade, the release of frozen funds and permission to sell oil. Qatar also explored whether Iran would allow United Nations inspectors to visit nuclear sites damaged during the conflict in exchange for sanctions relief, a proposal intended to create an initial confidence-building measure.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has described distrust as the main obstacle, saying contradictory American messages have left Tehran uncertain about Washington’s intentions. He said Iran remained open to negotiations if the outcome were fair and balanced, and identified the fate of Iran’s enriched-uranium stockpile as one of the hardest issues. The United States has demanded that highly enriched uranium leave Iran, while Tehran maintains that its nuclear program is peaceful and insists on its right to enrichment.
The diplomatic effort follows a June arrangement brokered with help from Pakistan and Qatar that was intended to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, end the blockade of Iranian ports and begin negotiations on a wider settlement. That agreement quickly unraveled as attacks resumed. The waterway remains a major point of leverage because roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passed through it before the war, while the ceasefire remains fragile and regional tensions continue.
The negotiations also face political divisions on both sides. Officials remain skeptical that Iran’s current government will accept an agreement, while Vice President JD Vance and envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner support renewed negotiations. In Tehran, President Masoud Pezeshkian and Araghchi have signaled willingness to pursue diplomacy, but hard-line criticism has questioned how much authority Iranian negotiators possess and how direct their contacts with Washington may be. For now, the next immediate test is whether the Qatari-mediated discussions in Doha can produce reciprocal steps strong enough to restart direct talks.