🇶🇦 Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani was due in Tehran on Thursday to pursue renewed diplomacy between the United States and Iran, Reuters reported.
The visit follows public recriminations over Washington’s planned economic pressure on Iran and comes with the wider conflict nearing its sixth month. Al Jazeera also reported that the trip was intended to seek a revival of US-Iran talks.
Qatar has acted as a back-channel negotiator between the sides and helped secure a June ceasefire, Reuters said. Its prime minister is also the country’s foreign minister, placing the mediation effort at the center of Qatar’s diplomatic leadership. 🤝
The dispute has consequences beyond bilateral relations: Reuters said oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz had fallen to 5 million barrels a day, compared with roughly 20 million before the war. No agreement or restart of formal talks had been announced. 🛢️