Qatar pushes for revival of US-Iran talks, warns against ‘cycles of escalation’

Qatar is working to restart negotiations between the United States and Iran, its foreign ministry said on Sunday, as the prime minister warned that regional security cannot rest on repeated confrontation.

A ministry spokesperson said Qatari officials were “shuttling between capitals” in the hope of making progress, and that Doha had received assurances from US administration officials that Washington wants to reach an agreement.

The spokesperson called for a regional solution that delivers stability, alongside an international understanding that protects waterways such as the Strait of Hormuz.

Speaking also on Sunday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said lasting security could not be built through "repeated cycles of escalation and retaliation", nor through "arrangements that leave any state vulnerable to the absence of security".

He called for a framework in which sovereignty is respected, and no state can pose a "threat to another", adding that Qatar “had worked with regional and international partners to keep channels of communication open and reduce tensions.”

In a statement, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry has condemned the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound by Ben Gvir and Israeli settlers on Sunday, saying “repeated provocations will fuel cycles of violence and escalation in the region”.