Iranian Parliament Speaker Returns from Doha After Talks on War Negotiations

On Tuesday evening, Iranian state television reported the return of Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, to Iran following an official visit to Doha, Qatar. During this visit, he engaged in consultations with several Qatari officials concerning negotiations with the United States.

The television report indicated that Ghalibaf, who leads the Iranian negotiation team, aimed to explore ways to strengthen a potential agreement to end the ongoing war with the United States.

Accompanying Ghalibaf on this trip were Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and the Governor of the Central Bank of Iran. They held a series of meetings addressing sensitive topics including the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and uranium enrichment issues, as well as discussions on unfreezing Iranian assets abroad.

No further official details have been released regarding the outcomes of these discussions.

In recent days, both parties reported progress in the negotiations, with former US President Donald Trump even hinting at an imminent settlement toward the end of last week.

However, hopes for reaching peace diminished following Israel's announcement of intensifying its campaign in Lebanon and concurrent US airstrikes on Iran.

On the night between Monday and Tuesday, the United States launched strikes on Iranian sites for the first time in several weeks, threatening to undermine efforts to secure an agreement to end the Middle East conflict.

The last known US airstrikes on Iran occurred in early May, targeting southern Iran. In response, the Iranian military targeted ships in the Strait of Hormuz, a move that Trump described as "insignificant."

Earlier on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baqaei stated during the weekly briefing on talks with the United States that "it can be said that we have reached conclusions on many of the issues under discussion," but added that "this does not mean that a deal is imminent," accusing Washington of changing its positions.

Iran also accused the US military of committing a "serious violation" of the ceasefire within 48 hours.

On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that reaching terms of a nascent agreement with Iran might take "a few more days."