Qatari FM meets Araghchi, Pezeshkian in Iran amid Gaza cease-fire talks

Iran hosted Qatar’s top diplomat on Monday for talks on the situation in the Middle East, as Doha tries to gain Tehran's support behind Gaza cease-fire talks to end the 10-month Israel-Hamas war. 

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani met his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, in Tehran, the first meeting between the two since the Iranian chief diplomat took the position this month. The two discussed bilateral relations, the situation in Gaza, violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank and unspecified regional issues, the Qatari Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

This is the Qatari top diplomat's first visit to Iran since January 2022.

Sheikh Mohammed, who is also prime minister of Qatar, is scheduled to meet Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian later on Monday, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

Iran’s semiofficial Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported last week that Sheikh Mohammed was expected to come to Iran for talks with Araghchi and other senior officials.

Why it matters: The Qatari foreign minister’s visit comes as US, Egypt and Qatar are trying to reach a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas. These talks took place in Cairo over the weekend, with several US, Israeli, Egyptian and Qatari officials, including Sheikh Mohammed, participating. Neither Israel nor Hamas agreed to several compromises presented by the mediators, Reuters reported, citing Egyptian officials. Conversely, a US official told the outlet that the talks were “constructive” and would continue over the coming days.

A source familiar with the negotiations told the Israeli news outlet Haaretz that the talks were conducted in a “positive atmosphere.”

Know more: Araghchi has held calls with other regional counterparts in recent days. In a Saturday conversation with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, Araghchi “expressed gratitude” for Egypt’s efforts to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

On the call, Abdelatty "expressed Egypt's aspiration to reach a truce agreement under which a cease-fire will be implemented and a hostage and detainees exchange deal will be completed," the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Araghchi spoke to Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan on Sunday. The two discussed bilateral relations and the Gaza war, according to the official media in both countries.

Al-Monitor’s Israel editor Rina Bassist contributed to this report.