Trump says Iran requested Doha meeting; Tehran denies direct talks with US

US President Donald Trump said on Monday on his Truth Social platform that Iran has requested a meeting, which will take place Tuesday in Doha, Qatar. Trump did not specify the participants. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt later told Fox News that US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner "will be flying to Doha for high-level meetings this week."

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei confirmed Monday that a delegation of Iranian experts would travel to Doha this week, but staunchly denied any sit-down with the Americans. "We have not yet entered the stage of negotiating a final agreement," he said, noting that "over the coming days, we will not have any negotiation meetings with the US side at any level."

The announcement came after Iran held its first talks with Oman on managing the Strait of Hormuz since the US-Iran deal was signed. The strait is a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passed before the conflict. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on X that the first meeting of the Joint Hormuz Committee was held in Muscat.

Recent incidents include US Central Command saying it attacked 10 Iranian military targets on Sunday over "continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping", and Iran retaliating with strikes against US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain. Oil prices, which fell to pre-war levels last week, rose modestly on Monday.

Implementation of the memorandum remains unclear, particularly on the issue of de-mining. Following a meeting between French President Emmanuel Macron and Omani Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, Paris and Muscat announced they would conduct joint de-mining operations. Gharibabadi insisted that under the agreement only Iran is to conduct de-mining. "The situation is sensitive and complex. We strongly advise France not to complicate it further with its provocations," he wrote.