QATAR PERSPECTIVE

Doha, May 24, 2026. In less than twenty-four hours, Donald Trump managed to ignite and immediately dampen hopes for imminent peace with Iran. On Saturday, he announced on Truth Social that a deal was "largely negotiated"; on Sunday, he wrote that "time is on our side" and his negotiators should rush nothing. For Doha, this sequence comes as no surprise: Trump's diplomacy has long operated via bombshell announcement followed by strategic recalibration.

What captures Qatari attention is that Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani appears explicitly on the list of Gulf leaders Trump called to discuss progress in negotiations. This direct inclusion confirms that Doha remains an indispensable interlocutor in any regional settlement, alongside Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. According to reporting by Al Jazeera, it was at the request of Gulf nations that Washington had suspended strikes on Iran, preserving a dialogue window.

Substantial disagreements remain. Tehran demands release of its frozen assets, estimated at billions of dollars. Iran's Tasnim agency, linked to the Revolutionary Guards, asserts Washington still blocks this central element. Add to this the Iranian nuclear program and the ongoing Lebanon conflict. The memorandum of understanding under discussion would include reopening the Strait of Hormuz—a lifeline for Gulf hydrocarbon exports—which Iran calls a sovereign "legal right." Tasnim further suggests maritime traffic normalization could occur within thirty days of an accord.

For Doha, the Strait of Hormuz is far more than a geopolitical symbol: it is an economic jugular vein. Any prolonged blockade directly weighs on the region's hydrocarbon flows, including Qatar's LNG exports. The emirate's interest in seeing the accord succeed is thus both commercial and diplomatic. This convergence of interests explains Qatar's quiet yet constant activism in mediation corridors.

Al Jazeera's coverage faithfully captures Trump's reversals without obscuring the complexity of friction points. The initial U.S. presidential announcement—"our relationship with Iran is becoming far more professional and productive"—is reported as stated, without editorial comment, leaving readers to judge the sincerity of a declaration immediately contradicted by the naval blockade remaining "in full force and effect."

Doha draws one central lesson from this episode: in Trump-Iran negotiations, no announcement is final until signing. Qatar, accustomed to navigating between partners with diverging interests, will continue occupying its mediator position—close enough to Washington to be consulted, equidistant enough from Tehran to remain useful.