JAKARTA - President Donald Trump praised the progress of indirect talks between the United States and Iran in Qatar on Wednesday, as the two sides aimed to push negotiations and ease tensions after a shootout.
The US leader said there had been a "very good meeting" in Doha after an initial dispute over the format threatened to overshadow the discussions.
Iran insists there will be no direct negotiations between the two sides in the Qatari capital on the two sides' memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the Middle East war, which erupted with a US-Israeli attack on Iran in late February.
"So far, Iran's denuclearization has gone well," President Trump told reporters as he prepared to board the Qatar-donated Air Force One, Al Arabiya and AFP reported (2/7).
"We attacked them very hard, but we got along very well," he said.
Previously, a diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks, confirmed negotiations were underway in Doha with Qatari and Pakistani mediators.
The discussions, held at a lower level and focused on the details of the MoU, aim to "build on the progress made at the Lucerne Lake Summit," the diplomat told AFP.
Tehran denied earlier claims by President Trump that there would be direct talks in Doha.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the Iranian delegation would be led by Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, but added officials "have no plan to negotiate with the Americans at any level in the coming days."
US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff did not take part in technical talks, an anonymous diplomat told AFP, after they met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Tuesday.
Qatar's Foreign Ministry said the three discussed "ongoing talks" between the US and Iran "within the framework of the memorandum of understanding," as well as developments in Lebanon.
On Wednesday, the office of the Emir of Qatar also said the two US envoys had met with the ruler of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
It is known that President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a Memorandum of Understanding mediated by Pakistan and Qatar on June 18, followed by the Lake Lucerne Summit in Switzerland on June 21
The memorandum of understanding, mediated by Qatar and Pakistan, culminated in a summit last month in Lucerne, Switzerland.
The understanding includes a 60-day ceasefire that stops the war, the reopening of the blocked Strait of Hormuz, and a timeline for a final deal to permanently end the conflict and reach an agreement on Iran's nuclear program.
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