How Qatar helped broker the Israel-Iran ceasefire
If the Iranian government was set on targeting American soldiers in the Gulf, it may have viewed the base in Qatar as less likely to provoke an escalation or damage its relations with some other Gulf Arab countries, which had been warming in recent years.
The wealthy emirate of Qatar has generally maintained closer ties with Iran than most of the other Persian Gulf countries. It has also played a leading role in mediating between Israel and Hamas, the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group, since the war in the Gaza Strip began in October 2023.
If Iran had attacked another Persian Gulf nation, it might have run into more complicated territory.
The headquarters of the US Navy's 5th Fleet, in Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia's oil installations could also have become targets. But Iran's diplomatic relations with these two other Persian Gulf nations are still new and relatively shaky.
Loading
The United Arab Emirates is one of Iran's largest trading partners, offering Iran a vital link to the global economy as it navigates long-standing Western sanctions. The prospect of missiles flying over Dubai, a glitzy metropolis in the UAE, would have alienated a neighbour that Iran depends on.
Qatari officials intervened with Iran on behalf of the Trump administration, according to three diplomats briefed on the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy. They said that Trump had told the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, that Israel had signed off on a US ceasefire proposal.
The president had asked Qatar to help bring Iran on board, the diplomats said. The Qatari prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, then persuaded Iran to agree to the truce proposal by late Monday in a call with the Iranian leadership, the diplomats said.
A senior White House official, who requested anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the negotiations publicly, said the Qatari emir played a role in the ceasefire discussions.
Loading
The truce took effect early Tuesday morning and appeared to be holding as evening approached.
Qatar's handling of the crisis illustrated the value the wealthy Persian Gulf emirate puts in its relationship with the United States, said Hopton, the former British diplomat.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
24 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
New trade war looms as Trump's disruptive tariffs become reality
'Grateful for small mercies' is a phrase that springs to mind after US President Donald Trump failed to follow through on his previous threats and allowed Australian goods to continue being subject to a US tariff of 10 per cent. Should Trump have made good on his ultimatums to hike the levy to 15 or 20 per cent, it would not have been the action of a special friend, especially given the US already enjoys a trade surplus with Australia. Displaying his patented bluster and blunder, Trump announced his tariff regime last April on what he called Liberation Day. It barely discriminated between friend or foe, tanked stock markets, caused the gold price to soar, and imposed a universal 10 per cent tariff on all imports, with Asian nations hit with even steeper tariffs. Four months later, some clarity has emerged. Trump's battery of new tariffs on more than 60 countries starts on August 7. He kept Australia on the same 10 per cent rate as another close ally, the United Kingdom. However, he was not so disposed to other allies: although the US imports more to Canada, he lifted the tariff from 25 per cent to 35 per cent. Trump hit New Zealand too, with a surprise 5 per cent rise to a 15 per cent tariff. None of this is set in stone and Trade Minister Don Farrell has confirmed Canberra will continue to lobby for the removal of all tariffs on Australian goods. But if Australia has dodged a bullet for the moment, there is no getting away from the harsh reality that the tariffs imposed by Trump on other major economies are likely to slow global economic activity and eventually could hurt our relatively small, export-driven economy. Loading Trump is attempting to put America First by scrapping the world trading system with his own scheme, which presumes nations must jump through his hoop. In an inconsiderate slight, the US did not even bother to confirm Australia was exempt from higher tariffs, but left it to a White House fact sheet to confirm any countries not on the new list would remain on 10 per cent. Last April, when the US tariffs were first announced, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton slammed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as a leader of a bad government who could not get a phone call with Trump to discuss tariffs. Little appears to have changed.
Sky News AU
24 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
‘Rewarding Hamas': Trump warns Canada against Palestine recognition
Former White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney has criticised Canada and the United Kingdom for 'rewarding' Hamas with their move to recognise Palestine. 'There are a lot of politicians here, a lot of folks in the Trump administration, are like, 'Wait a second, so you want to reward the Palestinians for the October 7th attacks?',' Mr Mulvaney told Sky News host James Morrow. 'This is what the Palestinians wanted. They wanted this war. 'It's why they started the attacks on October 7.'
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Trump was never that interested in Australia. Albanese made sure to keep it that way
Washington: Australia fought hard for an exemption to Donald Trump's steel and aluminium tariffs early in the year and got nowhere, despite positive signs from people close to the US president. The next time around, it took a different tack. Partly that was out of necessity: the 'reciprocal tariffs' went into effect just as Australia entered a federal election campaign. But there was also a view among Australian officials that there was little value in being one of the first movers. After all, Australia copped the lowest possible rate on April 2 – 10 per cent – so it was difficult to protest too much, even if it seemed unfair. And the risk was that the United States would demand more than we were willing to give. That view intensified when the United Kingdom became the first country to strike a deal – of sorts – with Trump, but still got lumped with a 10 per cent tariff. The baseline is the baseline; there's not much you can do. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was lambasted by his political opponents for failing to secure a face-to-face meeting with Trump, and being stood up at the G7 when Trump left early. And perhaps in the counterfactual, he would have charmed the president and secured the complete tariff reprieve Australia seeks. You never know. Loading But the better analysis is probably that lying low paid dividends, and leaves Australia in a position to negotiate down the track – which the White House is open to doing. Other countries weren't so lucky. New Zealand's tariff was hiked to 15 per cent, from 10 per cent, which its trade minister, Todd McClay, said appeared to be due to the (small) US trade deficit with Wellington. The US enjoys a trade surplus with Australia, and we have a free-trade deal (supposedly), which is why Canberra feels the tariffs are egregious. But it also means we were never likely to be whacked with a higher tariff, unless everyone else was, too.
