American delegation may travel to Doha for Iran talks

Indirect U.S.-Iran talks mediated by Qatar and Pakistan have reportedly made progress, and an American delegation may travel to Doha to join the discussions. Washington, Tehran and Doha have not officially confirmed the claim.

Indirect U.S.-Iran talks mediated by Qatar and Pakistan have reportedly made progress, and an American delegation may travel to Doha, the capital of Qatar, to meet with Iranian officials. The Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper reported this, citing sources close to the mediation. Washington, Tehran and Doha have made no official statement on the claim.

According to the newspaper, the parties reached initial understandings on Iran's nuclear program, maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and financial incentives for Iran; China and Russia will guarantee any potential agreement. It is not yet known who will be part of the American delegation. The Washington Post wrote that U.S. Vice President JD Vance recently proposed a meeting and would personally lead the U.S. delegation. MS NOW reported that U.S. Special Representative Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are also involved in the process.

Axios reported that a delegation led by the senior adviser to Qatar's prime minister and foreign minister held talks lasting more than 12 hours with Iranian officials in Tehran on Friday and returned to Doha together with Iran's negotiating team. The talks are expected to continue in Doha on Saturday. A diplomatic source said, “Positive progress has been made. Talks are continuing to pave the way for an agreement between the U.S. and Iran.”

U.S. Vice President JD Vance shaking hands with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the Lake Lucerne Summit in June 2026 (archive)

Reuters reported that Qatari mediators presented a draft agreement providing for a seven-day period to address the parties' concerns and daily confidence-building measures. An Iranian source said the negotiations were still being conducted indirectly through the mediator and that an Iranian deputy foreign minister was in Doha.

Iranian Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the talks would not advance unless Iran's seven conditions were fully accepted. They include a region-wide ceasefire, the release of Iranian assets frozen abroad, the lifting of oil sanctions and the U.S. naval blockade, war reparations and the withdrawal of U.S. forces.

Regional countries including Türkiye, Egypt, Iraq, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are urging Iran to return to negotiations before the U.S. midterm elections on November 3. A U.S. official told Axios that President Donald Trump could be more inclined to order a major military operation against Iran if Republicans suffer heavy losses in the midterm elections, while a White House official said the election would not influence Trump's decisions on Iran. Vance had proposed Istanbul or Doha for direct talks in a letter to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.

American delegation may travel to Doha for Iran talks