Iran and the United States held indirect technical talks in Doha on Wednesday to work out the flow of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and secure a lasting ceasefire. The discussions follow up on a 14-point interim accord signed last month to pause the war that began with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran back in February and establish frameworks to negotiate lasting peace. The two sides did not meet face to face, instead interacting separately with mediators from Qatar and Pakistan.
The U.S. and Iran have publicly clashed over how to interpret last month’s interim pact, a dispute that has spilt into tit-for-tat military strikes over the past week and left little sign of movement on the thornier issues, chief among them, Iran’s nuclear program. According to two senior Iranian officials, Tehran is determined to win international recognition of its control over the Strait of Hormuz, including the right to levy fees on ships passing through the Gulf and is prepared to enforce that control by force if necessary.
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most critical oil and gas corridors, and its status has been a central flashpoint since the ceasefire first took hold in April. Countries heavily reliant on Middle Eastern oil imports have faced fuel shortages as well as disruptions to gas and fertiliser supplies.
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