Trump claims Iran has agreed to Doha talks after latest clashes

Donald Trump has claimed that Tehran has agreed to hold talks in Doha after the US and Iran traded fire in the strait of Hormuz over the weekend, threatening the collapse of a ceasefire meant to keep the waterway open and pave the way for peace talks.

- Andrew Roth

In a terse post on Truth Social, the US president said the meetings would take place in the Qatari capital, as US media reported that the two sides had agreed to halt strikes after tit-for-tat attacks that once again cut off shipping through the crucial waterway.

Trump wrote: “IRAN HAS REQUESTED A MEETING. IT WILL TAKE PLACE TOMORROW IN DOHA! President DJT.”

But last night Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, said US officials’ trip to Doha had nothing to do with the Iranian delegation visiting the city, adding: “We have not yet entered the stage of negotiating a final agreement ... Over the coming days, we will not have any negotiation meetings with the US side at any level.”

Iran on Saturday targeted a cargo ship in the strait in a drone attack, leading US Central Command (Centcom) to launch retaliatory strikes against Iranian “military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defence sites, drone storage facilities and minelayer capabilities”.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) then said on Sunday it had launched a joint missile and drone operation targeting eight US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain.