Doha, September 20 (QNA) - In support of the United Nations central tasks of maintaining international peace and security and achieving stability in the region, Doha hosted last June a round of indirect talks between the United States and Iran, with the aim of reviving the agreement and breaking the deadlock in the Iranian nuclear file, in an initiative that won the praise of world public opinion and affirmed the confidence of the international community in the diplomatic efforts of the State of Qatar.

On June 28, the State of Qatar hosted a round of indirect talks between the United States and Iran, under the auspices of the European Union Coordinator.

In a statement, the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirmed Qatar's full readiness to provide an atmosphere that would help all parties make the dialogue a success, expressing Qatar's hope that the round of indirect talks would culminate in positive results that would contribute to reviving the nuclear agreement signed in 2015, in a way that supports and strengthens security, stability and peace in the region and opens new horizons for broader regional cooperation and dialogue with Iran.

The Doha round of indirect talks was able to bring the views closer between the two sides and break the stalemate that marred the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear file, especially since confidence-building measures between the two parties were the biggest challenge before the State of Qatar; this is what the Doha Round succeeded in doing, in addition to the establishment of the indirect Vienna talks also between US and Iranian officials, last August.

Doha's hosting of the round of indirect talks between the United States and Iran was preceded by HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani's official visit to Tehran on May, 12. In joint statements after their talks, HH the Amir and HE President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Ebrahim Raisi, affirmed that the two sides agreed on the importance of all working in the region to resolve conflicts, reduce tension and make the region in a better position to serve its peoples.

With regard to Qatari-Iranian relations, His Highness pointed out that the State of Qatar is keen to establish a permanent and continuous dialogue, stressing that Iran is a neighbor country and has historical relations with the State of Qatar based on common interests, mutual respect and meaningful discussion for the sake of stability in the region and strengthening international peace and security.

On the Vienna negotiations, HH the Amir said that the State of Qatar looks positively and optimistically at international efforts to peacefully resolve differences with Iran over its nuclear project. This has always been Qatars approach in supporting peace and stability in the region.

On the 20th of last May, HH the Amir confirmed during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as part of his working visit to Germany, that he had discussed with the German Chancellor the latest developments in international efforts to peacefully resolve differences with Iran over its nuclear project, stressed that this approach is the permanent approach of the State of Qatar in supporting peace and stability in the Gulf region.

In his response to a question during the press conference regarding the developments in the Iranian file and the State of Qatar's opinion on this, His Highness affirmed the importance of cooperation between Iran, Europe and the United States of America, stressing the need to resolve disputes between them by peaceful means.

His Highness expressed Qatar's optimism for dialogue between these parties, pointing out that the State of Qatar supports resolving disputes by peaceful means, hoping that an agreement will be reached in the near future.

In this regard, His Highness expressed Qatar's readiness to mediate between Iran, Europe and the United States if requested to do so.

The Qatari diplomacy did not stop mediating to reach a consensus on the Iranian nuclear file, as HE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani visited Tehran on July 6 and met with Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, where the latest developments in the nuclear deal talks were reviewed.

His Excellency confirmed, in a joint press conference with the Iranian Foreign Minister after the meeting, that the State of Qatar seeks to support the parties to the talks to revive the nuclear agreement to reach a fair agreement for all, taking into account the concerns of all parties. HE noted that his visit to Tehran comes in a mid of many regional challenges, pointing out that it is important for there to be constructive efforts from all neighboring countries for the success of nuclear negotiations and regional dialogue.

He explained that he had heard from the Iranian minister his country's emphasis on the importance of all parties' commitment to the nuclear agreement.

For his part, the Iranian Foreign Minister thanked the State of Qatar for hosting the indirect tripartite talks in Doha to revive the nuclear agreement and said: "We have witnessed a prominent role from HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and his good efforts to facilitate and advance these negotiations, we are ready to reach a robust and sustainable agreement and did not make any further requests, and all our requests are based on 2015 agreement framework, we have good intentions and we are engaging in the negotiations on a real basis, "he added. 

The State of Qatar continued its efforts to bring views closer on the Iranian nuclear file and revive the agreement, as it held new talks with the European and Iranian sides.

On the 27th of last August, HE Assistant Foreign Minister for Regional Affairs Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al Khulaifi, went to Tehran and met with Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Ali Bagheri. During the meeting, they reviewed the developments in the ongoing negotiations to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with the United States.

HE the Assistant Foreign Minister for Regional Affairs stressed the importance of advancing further in order to revive the nuclear agreement which is in the interest of the security and stability of the region, expressing the State of Qatar's aspiration for a close agreement between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran On the same day, Dr. Al Khulaifi had a phone call with Enrique Mora, the European Union's coordinator for Vienna talks, during which they reviewed the developments in the negotiations to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on Iran's nuclear program.

HE expressed the State of Qatar's appreciation for the efforts exerted by the European Union to bring views of the parties closer together in order to revive the Iranian nuclear agreement, affirming that reaching a just agreement that takes into account the concerns of all parties is in the interest of the security and stability of the region.

On the fourth of this September, HE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani held a telephone conversation with HE Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

During the phone call, the two sides reviewed the bilateral relations and the latest developments in the negotiations to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with the United States.

HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs reiterated the State of Qatar's aspiration for the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States to reach a consensus that contributes to reviving the nuclear deal and reaching a fair agreement for all, taking into consideration the concerns of all parties, stressing that this agreement is in the interest of the security and stability of the region.

Speaking to QNA, Dr. Khalil Al Anani, Associate Professor of Political Science at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and Senior Fellow at the Arab Center Washington, praised the efforts of the State of Qatar to break the deadlock in the Iranian nuclear file and bring the views of the various parties closer, stressing that the State of Qatar believes that dialogue and a diplomatic solution are the best in terms of returning to the Iran nuclear deal.

Dr. Al Anani pointed out that Doha has tried to play the role of mediator between Iran and the US during the past months to overcome the outstanding obstacles between the two parties, saying that the problem is that there are other parties trying to sabotage the negotiations between Tehran and Washington, particularly the Israeli entity.

He added that the ball is now in the court of Washington and Tehran to save the nuclear agreement.

The Qatari diplomatic moves came, in conjunction with discussions between Iran and European countries to make the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear a success. On the fourth of last August, the Austrian capital Vienna hosted a round of negotiations five months after their suspension, the ninth between Iran and the Joint Working Group, based on proposals of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.

The European Union, in its capacity as coordinator of the nuclear talks between Iran and the 5+1 group, presented a "final text" to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement, after indirect talks between US and Iranian officials in Vienna, which lasted four days.

The European Union has the status of a negotiating coordinator that presents proposals and puts forward ideas to the parties involved in the negotiations officially, namely the five major countries plus Germany.

On August 16, Iran announced that it had responded in writing to the text proposed by the European Union on reviving the nuclear agreement, and that an agreement would be reached if the American response is realistic and flexible.

The Iranian Foreign Minister had recently announced that the Vienna negotiations aimed at reviving the nuclear agreement were in their final stages, linking reaching an agreement with the United States of America being realistic.

Iran insists that the negotiation of any new agreement should include lifting all sanctions imposed on it by the United States, after its unilateral withdrawal in 2018 during the era of former President Donald Trump.

About a week later, the United States of America announced that it had sent its response to the European Union, regarding a proposal to try to revive the Iranian nuclear agreement.

In a statement, State Department spokesman Ned Price said that the US Department of State received through the European Union Iran's comments on the final text proposed by the European Union, the review of those comments has now ended, and US Department of State has responded to the European Union.

Price did not provide details of the response, but the United States is not expected to accept Iran's proposal without seeking additional changes and negotiations.

As for John Kirby, Coordinator of Strategic Communications in the US National Security Council, confirmed that his country is closer today to reaching an agreement with Iran than it was before, adding that US President Joe Biden still believes that diplomacy and a return to the nuclear agreement is the best solution.

In turn, Iran announced that it had received the American response to the proposals made by Tehran to resolve the outstanding issues in the nuclear negotiations.

Nasser Kanaani, a spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, said his country sent its views on the US response regarding the possible draft text of the agreement to revive the nuclear agreement.

He explained that after receiving the American response, the Iranian team of experts carefully studied it, and Iran's responses were compiled, after evaluation at different levels, and handed over to the European Coordinator for the negotiations, adding that the text sent has a constructive approach with the aim of ending the negotiations.

The Russian position does not seem far from the European position on the agreement, as Moscow suggested, through its permanent representative to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, that the negotiating parties would reach an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program within the coming days .

He considered the ball now on the American side, noting that Tehran proposed, during the amendment of the project, strengthening the guarantees for preserving the agreement in the future.

Iran is negotiating with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, in addition to Germany and the European Union, to revive the 2015 agreement that former US President Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018, which was followed by Washington imposing strict sanctions on Tehran, to which Tehran responded with steps, including increasing the rate of uranium enrichment to 20 percent, instead of 3.67 percent.

According to Western reports, the nuclear agreement will lead to a temporary lifting of sanctions, within a period that extends to 2025, and this would free more than $100 billion from frozen Iranian assets.

According to Western diplomats, Iran still adheres to its preconditions before signing any agreement, which include other parties providing binding guarantees to respect and implement any agreement signed by Iran in the future, preceded by defining mechanisms within an acceptable timeframe for Iran to fully lift the sanctions, while obliging the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to complete the investigations file at three Iranian sites specialized in nuclear activities.

More than a year ago, Iran and the powers involved in the 2015 agreement began talks in Vienna in which the United States indirectly participated after it unilaterally withdrew from the agreement during the Trump era. Afterward, talks on the Iranian nuclear file stopped last March for several reasons.

The file of negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program since 2015 until now has passed through several important stages, most notably when Iran and the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany reached the nuclear agreement, which was officially known as the "Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action" (JCPOA) on July 14, 2015.

The agreement was the result of 21 months of hard negotiations, 12 years of intermittent negotiations, crises and tension. It entered into force as of January 16, 2016.

The agreement allowed for the lifting of international economic sanctions that were imposed on Tehran, in exchange for reducing its nuclear activities and ensuring the peacefulness of its program, which is now subject to the monitoring and inspection program of the International Atomic Energy Agency, one of the most stringent in the world.

The agreement provided Western countries with a guarantee that Iran does not seek to develop atomic weapons, which Tehran has always denied.

However, on May 8, 2018, the world was surprised when former US President Donald Trump announced his country's unilateral withdrawal from the agreement and the re-imposition of severe sanctions on Iran.

Tehran remained on its commitments for a year, before announcing, as of May 8, 2019, the start of a gradual retreat from the implementation of basic provisions in the agreement.

The Iranian setbacks included, in turn, increasing the level of enrichment, not adhering to a ceiling on the number of centrifuges, and reaching research steps related to the nuclear program.
During the first months of 2021, Iran took a series of steps, including restricting the work of international inspectors, and initially raising enrichment to 20 percent, and later 60 percent.

In April 2021, talks began in Vienna between Iran and the powers still affiliated with the agreement, in which the United States indirectly participated. The talks aimed to return Washington to the agreement and lift sanctions on Tehran, in exchange for the latter's return to its nuclear commitments.

In late November 2021, Iran and the major powers resumed talks in Vienna, with Tehran confirming its intention to reach a "fair" agreement, but in mid-March, the European Union announced the suspension of talks.

Then came the indirect talks between Washington and Tehran in Doha last June, which political analysts confirm have stirred up the stagnant waters in the Iranian nuclear file. These talks demonstrated the confidence of the international community in the integrity and objectivity of the Qatari mediation and its endeavors to establish security and stability in the region and the world, through the activation of diplomatic channels and the convergence of views between the different parties, which enhances international peace and stability.

Analysts point to the role played by the State of Qatar at the regional and international levels, and the successes it has achieved in settling many international disputes as an honest mediator over the past years; the most recent of these successes is the signing of the Doha Agreement for peace in Chad, under Qatari sponsorship, which is a crucial step towards reconciliation and the consolidation of peace in Chad. They stressed that Doha, over the years, has conducted rounds of negotiations between the conflicting parties in various files as a facilitator of dialogue between them, without exerting any pressure on the different parties.

(QNA)