Trump Hosts Qatar’s Prime Minister as Hopes for a Quick Iran Deal Stay Low

President Donald Trump is set to sit down in Washington with Qatar’s prime minister and foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, who recently returned from Tehran. Vice President JD Vance will join, and Reuters reports that senior American and Gulf officials doubt an agreement is close. The conflict, which Trump started with Israel on February 28, is now in its ninth month. Qatar has served as a go-between since early in the war, carrying messages and suggesting ways to narrow the gaps.

Iran’s Truce Plan and Why Washington Is Rejecting It

Tehran wants the US blockade of its ports lifted, some sanctions eased and the bombing halted. In exchange, it would end its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, with nuclear talks and other sanctions left for later. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called those terms unrealistic and said no breakthrough was imminent. Iran’s foreign ministry insists the offer is the most reasonable one available. UAE official Anwar Gargash warned that the region should brace for a long stretch of uncertainty, and Turkey’s President Erdogan said he urged Trump to avoid fresh escalation.

Military Strikes and Tanker Attacks Continue

Pressure From the Midterms and the Energy Crisis

Fighting has not paused. Iranian media say US forces hit Qeshm island overnight, reportedly targeting radar systems and missile and mine laying bases, though local officials said vital services were unaffected. Attacks on tankers around the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz are running at their highest rate since the war began, and Houthi forces claimed a strike on an Aramco office building in Riyadh. Vance and other Republicans have blamed the war for their midterm losses, adding domestic pressure to end it as the conflict keeps fueling a global energy shortage.