US, Iran deliver conflicting reports on fresh peace talks

In the Oval Office, US President Donald Trump told reporters that the US-Iran meeting in Qatar this week will be “perhaps important, perhaps not.”

Earlier, Trump said that Iran had requested a meeting with US representatives in Doha, the capital of Qatar. However, Tehran denied this.

The United Arab Emirates announced that its citizens can travel to Lebanon starting Monday.

The move marks the end of a weekslong ban that was put in place due to the war in the Middle East and concerns about Iran’s influence.

According to the official WAM news agency, the Gulf state’s foreign ministry announced that it “will allow UAE citizens to travel to the sisterly Lebanese Republic, starting from Monday, June 29, 2026.”

However, the ministry asked citizens to register with its consular services platform before traveling to Lebanon.

In April, the UAE banned travel for Emirati nationals to Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran, citing regional developments, including the war in the Middle East.

On Monday, flights resumed between Tehran and Dubai for the first time since the war, according to Iranian state TV and other media. However, the ban on Emirati nationals traveling to Iran was not lifted.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi said that the removal of mines from the Strait of Hormuz should be carried out solely by Iran, in accordance with the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Tehran and Washington.

He made his statement on X in response to comments by French President Emmanuel Macron regarding the demining of the Strait of Hormuz.

Earlier on Monday, Macron said that France and Oman were working together to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East and will cooperate with their partners to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz.

Gharibabadi added that the situation is sensitive and complex and that France should avoid further provocation.

Steffen Seibert, Germany’s 66-year-old ambassador to Israel, is retiring after serving four years there.

In a video message on X, Seibert said, “A big part of my heart will remain here,” in fluent Hebrew.

During a walk on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv, Seibert listed 25 things he will miss about Israel. These include Israeli songs, food, and places, as well as the hoopoe, Israel’s national bird.

Before moving to Israel, Seibert served for more than 11 years as government spokesperson for then-Chancellor Angela Merkel.

He will be succeeded in Tel Aviv by Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, the former German ambassador to Moscow.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun told US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper that he was committed to extending the state’s control, via its military, to the border with Israel, where the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah has a strong presence.

According to a statement from the presidency, he reaffirmed to Cooper “the Lebanese state’s determination to extend its authority, through its armed forces, to the southern border.”

The statement added that the pair discussed preparations for implementing a framework agreement between Lebanon, Israel, and the US.

According to a statement from the Lebanese army, its chief, Rodolphe Haykal, also received Cooper. The two discussed the latest developments in Lebanon and the region.

Hezbollah has rejected the US-Israel-Lebanon agreement, which calls for Hezbollah to be disarmed before Israel will withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon.

The German Development Ministry announced that Germany will provide €250 million ($286 million) in additional support for hard-hit regions in Africa and Asia facing the impact of the prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

At the Hamburg Sustainability Conference, Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan said that the money will be used to improve food security, strengthen resilience, and support small farmers.

This will be done in close cooperation with UN organizations, such as the World Food Program (WFP), and other partners. “One prominent example is the Sahel Resilience Partnership,” the ministry said in a statement.

To reduce the affected areas’ dependence on imported fertilizers, the Development Ministry will also provide €30 million for measures that promote organic fertilizers and local production. 

France and Oman are working together to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East, and they will cooperate with their partners to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz, French President Emmanuel Macron announced after meeting with ​Oman’s ⁠Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al ⁠at ​the Elysee Palace.

“We have decided ‌to collaborate, in ‌conjunction ​with our partners, on clearing mines from the Strait in ​order to secure maritime routes and guarantee ⁠free ​and unconditional ​passage through the Strait of ​Hormuz,” Macton ‌wrote on X.

He also stated that Oman and France are strengthening their partnership through historic agreements in economic, scientific, cultural, and industrial fields.

US President Donald Trump announced that Iran has requested a meeting with the US representatives. 

“It will take place tomorrow in Doha!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Doha is the capital of Qatar, which is one of the mediators between the US and Iran.

Later, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that US envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s adviser and son-in-law, “will be flying to Doha for high-level meetings this week.”

However, Tehran had previously denied that technical talks aimed at ending the war in the Middle East were scheduled for this week.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Monday that technical ‌working ⁠group ⁠meetings under the Iran-US memorandum of understanding ​were not scheduled for this ​week, Iran’s Tasnim ​news ‌agency reported.

Earlier, several media outlets reported that US-Iran talks were to take place in Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday, though DW clarified that Iran’s position was not yet known.

Gharibabadi ​said consultations between Iran ​and Qatar regarding ‌the US commitments were continuing ​as ⁠planned but that technical working ⁠group ​talks in Doha had not been confirmed.

Iran and the US signed an initial agreement on 17th June, kicking off a 60-day period of negotiations on a final deal to end the war. 

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday ‌that, ⁠after ⁠an agreement with the US lifted oil ​and petrochemical ​sanctions, $6 ‌billion out of $12 billion of assets ‌frozen in Qatar ‌would ​be released and returned to Iran, Iranian ​state media reported.

Iran and the ⁠United ​States ​signed an interim ​agreement this month ‌to prepare the ​ground ⁠for a settlement ⁠of ​their conflict.

Iran and Oman held a first meeting of the Hormuz Joint Committee in Muscat on Monday, according to Iranian ‌deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi.

Gharibabadi said on X that he met with Oman’s Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Al-Hinai to discuss the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway between Oman and Iran.

“While reviewing current issues related to the Strait, we exchanged views on the future management of the Strait within the framework of paragraph five of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understandingand the sovereign rights of the coastal states,” he wrote, alluding to the interim peace agreement signed with the United States earlier this month.

Iran and Oman are working out the details on how the vital waterway, through which around 20% of the world’s oil usually flows, will be governed.

Indian seafarers pay the price in US-Iran war

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The US and Iran are slated to meet in Doha on Tuesday for talks, media reports say, though Iran’s position on the matter is not clear yet.

The talks were initially supposed to take place in Switzerland and focus on Iran’s nuclear program, according to news site Axios, but were moved to Qatar to focus on the Strait of Hormuz following a recent escalation.

The US-Iran interim peace agreement, signed on June 17, has come under strain following tit-for-tat military strikes between the two countries.

On Sunday, US President Donald Trump warned in a post on Truth Social that “the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist” if a point is reached where he decides the US will no longer be “reasonable,” highlighting the fragile nature of the peace agreement.

On Friday, the US accused Iran of attacking a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, jeopardizing a ceasefire agreement between the two countries.

In response, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced fresh strikes on Iran. CENTCOM said on Sunday that US fighter jets had struck 10 Iranian military targets. 

Iran’s Foreign Ministry accused the US of a “blatant violation” of the peace agreement between the two countries, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it targeted US military facilities in retaliation for Friday’s strikes.

Iran then launched drone and missile attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait in response to US airstrikes.

Fighting in Lebanon threatens deal

Meanwhile, Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement in Washington on Friday after several days of talks, a move welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On Sunday, Lebanese state media reported that Israel carried out an airstrike targeting southern Lebanon. 

The Israeli army said it destroyed an extensive tunnel in southern Lebanon on Sunday.

The Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah has rejected the agreement as “null and void.”

The United States and Iran have agreed to halt attacks and resume technical talks after a weekend of tit-for-tat strikes threatened an interim peace deal, a US official said late on Sunday.

“Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the MOU,” a US official told reporters, referring to the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran.

“Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely” in and around the Strait of Hormuz, the official said.

Delegates from Washington and Tehran are set to meet on Tuesday in Doha, Qatar, according to US news site Axios.

Despite an April ceasefire, the two sides have continued to exchange attacks, threatening the flow of traffic through the vital Strait of Hormuz.

On Sunday, US Central Command said it had struck 10 Iranian military targets over “continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping.”

Here are the latest updates regarding the Iran war and wider Middle East.

Late Sunday, the United States and Iran agreed to halt attacks on each other and resume talks aimed at ending the conflict in the Middle East, a US official announced.

Over the weekend, the US military said it had struck 10 Iranian military targets over “continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping.”

This comes even as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stressed the importance of retaining control over the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to state media.

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