The parties agree to continue discussions in the next period and the next round of talks will be scheduled.
Pakistan and Qatar facilitated separate meetings between US and Iranian negotiators in Doha on Thursday, with both sides reporting positive progress on issues related to the Islamabad memorandum of understanding (MoU), according to an official statement.
A statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on X-Day said Qatari and Pakistani mediators held separate engagements with the US and Iranian negotiating teams in the Qatari capital.
The statement said the discussions recorded “positive progress” on issues related to the Islamabad MoU, building on the understandings reached during the Lake Lucerne Summit.
He added that the parties had agreed to continue discussions in the coming period, and that the next round of talks will be scheduled as soon as possible after the funeral processions of the former Iranian supreme leader.
The Ministry of External Affairs did not reveal details of the issues discussed nor did it elaborate on the content of the Islamabad MoU. He also did not identify the members of the negotiating teams or specify a date for the next meeting.
The meetings come as US Vice President JD Vance said discussions between the US and Iran were going well as they held indirect technical talks in Qatar over the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, adding that Washington would not return to all-out combat unless necessary.
The talks build on a 14-point interim agreement signed last month that aimed to stop the war that began with the US and Israeli attacks on Iran in February and reopen the strait, while setting up 60 days of negotiations for a permanent peace deal.
However, the United States and Iran have argued publicly over the meaning of the interim pact, leading to mutual military attacks over the past week and leaving few signs of progress on more complex issues, including Iran’s nuclear program.
Read: Talks between the United States and Iran focused on the Strait of Hormuz conclude in Doha
Vance said he could not guarantee that Washington would not return to full combat operations by next month’s deadline, but that for now President Donald Trump had directed officials to reach an agreement.
“I can’t commit to anything, because obviously it depends on what the Iranians are ultimately going to do,” he told reporters during a visit to Virginia Beach, Virginia. “What I can commit to is: the president will not send our military back unless it is necessary, unless there is a clearly defined purpose for it.”
In Doha, technical talks focused on commercial shipping in the strait and would later focus on Tehran’s nuclear capabilities, Vance said, adding: “It’s still pretty early, but the talks are going well.”
Iran is determined to win international recognition for its control over the key oil shipping waterway and its ability to collect fees from ships entering or leaving the Gulf, even if it has to do so by force, according to two senior Iranian sources.
Traffic has partially resumed through the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas trade passed before the war.
Trump, who has said eliminating Iran’s highly enriched uranium is a top priority, told reporters Wednesday that “Iran’s denuclearization is progressing well,” without giving details.
Asked about the possibility of returning to an all-out war with Iran, Trump added: “Well, I think they’ve come a long way. We hit them really hard last week. I think they’re fine.”
The indirect talks, brokered by Qatar and Pakistan, began on Tuesday night and continued on Wednesday, an Iranian official said.
They are structured as sessions between chief negotiators and specialists, a source with knowledge of the talks said, adding that Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and envoy Steve Witkoff met with Qatar’s prime minister to lay the groundwork for the talks but would not attend.
Kushner and Witkoff later met with the emir of Qatar to discuss US-Iran negotiations and developments in Lebanon, where a parallel conflict erupted in early March between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi led a delegation of representatives from Iran’s Foreign Ministry, central bank and Agriculture Ministry, met with the Prime Minister of Qatar and held talks with mediators.
Iran has publicly stated that its priorities include reaching an agreement on the management of the strait and the release of $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets, and the Iranian official said current discussions would focus on those two issues.
The United States’ stated priority is to ensure the free flow of traffic through the strait, the source with knowledge of the talks said.
