Qatari prime minister welcomes ‘positive discussions’ with Trump and Vance on US-Iran deal
Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Monday that he met with US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance in Washington, DC to discuss advancing talks between the US and Iran. “We discussed the situation in the region and ways to progress the US-Iran talks,” he wrote on the US social media platform X. “Grateful for the positive discussions on reaching a deal and bringing peace to the region,” he added.
Trump also welcomed the talks, describing his conversation with Sheikh Mohammed as “excellent.” “We are seeing positive momentum toward an end to this Conflict,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. Earlier Monday, Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera reported that Sheikh Mohammed’s separate talks with Trump and Vance had made “good progress” on Iran, citing a source familiar with the discussions. A diplomatic source told the channel that the talks sought to narrow differences between Washington and Tehran and advance negotiations.
Left out here: Leaves out what changes the picture
The article quotes Trump's 'positive momentum toward an end to this Conflict' but not what he said alongside it the same day. He kept open the possibility of new strikes, and he said Qatar and other Gulf states favoured keeping the US naval blockade, which Iran demands be lifted (S9). Anadolu reported the blockade remark in its own earlier piece. Without these, a reader sees only the conciliatory half of the US position.
How we know
- Al Arabiya English reported“but kept open the possibility of new strikes”Trump sees ‘positive momentum’ on Iran after talks with Qatari PM (opens in a new tab)
- The National reported“Mr Trump said Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and other countries favoured maintaining the US naval blockade of Iran”Trump meets Qatari PM and calls renewed military action on Iran ‘quite unlikely’ (opens in a new tab)
- Anadolu Agency (English) wrote earlier“Trump said Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and other countries favored maintaining the US naval blockade on Iran”Qatari prime minister's talks with Trump and Vance yield ‘good progress’ on Iran: Media (opens in a new tab)
An unnamed Iranian official meanwhile told the semi-official Fars News Agency on Monday that reports of talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for the release of $8 billion in frozen Iranian assets were false. The official said Tehran would negotiate only within the framework of seven conditions it had conveyed to Washington, including lifting the naval blockade and unilateral sanctions, releasing frozen assets and ending the war.
The US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Feb. 28. A ceasefire was reached in April, but fighting between the US and Iran resumed in July as diplomatic efforts stalled.
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