Iran FM arrives in Doha for talks with top Qatari officials

After Qatar, the Iranian foreign minister is scheduled to travel to Oman.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian has arrived in Doha to engage in discussions with top Qatari officials regarding bilateral relations, as well as other regional and international developments.

Amirabdollahian embarked on his journey from Tehran to Doha on Monday night after receiving an official invitation from Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.

During his visit, Iran’s chief diplomat is accompanied by a delegation that includes assistants to the foreign minister, a member of the Iranian Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Policy and National Security, and Nasser Kanaani, the spokesperson for the foreign ministry.

His visit to the Gulf nation comes following a recent visit by Mohammad Reza Farzin, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran, to Doha last week. Iran’s top banker held discussions with Qatari officials to explore avenues for enhancing monetary, banking, and economic cooperation between the two nations.

The Iranian foreign minister is scheduled to travel to Muscat following his trip to Qatar.

Amirabdollahian said his visits to Qatar and Oman aim to further strengthen relations with these countries and follow up on the agreements made by high-ranking officials from all three nations.

He emphasised that Iran’s neighbouring countries possess significant economic, trade, and political opportunities.

The Iranian administration’s foreign policy approach places great importance on the ongoing advancement of comprehensive relations with neighbouring nations, Tehran’s top diplomat said.

In February 2022 when Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi visited Doha, Iran and Qatar signed 14 significant agreements aimed at strengthening economic cooperation.

In recent months, Qatar has received praise from Iran for its heavy diplomatic role in affairs between Tehran and Washington.

Doha has ramped up its unofficial role as a mediator between Iran and Washington by hosting a round of negotiations in Doha in June 2022 as part of efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.

In late March, Tehran confirmed the Gulf country’s role in talks over the exchange of prisoners as well as the revival of nuclear deal.

“Qatar is always moving in the right track and has played a role in the prisoner exchange talks and the nuclear deal,” Amirabdollahian told Al Jazeera.