Iran has approved the final draft of a memorandum of understanding with the United States, handing the document to a Qatari delegation that has been shuttling between the two adversaries.
The Qatari delegation arrived in Tehran on June 10 to engage in shuttle diplomacy. At the center of the negotiations: a proposed 60-day ceasefire, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, measures to curtail Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and the potential release of roughly $12 billion in frozen Iranian assets currently held in Qatar.
What’s in the deal and why it matters
Iran’s frozen assets in Qatar are estimated at up to $24 billion in total, with phased releases proposed under the agreement. The immediate ask from Tehran is access to $12 billion of that sum, which Iranian negotiators have positioned as a precondition for advancing the deal further.
The negotiations have involved senior officials from Iran’s central bank and foreign ministry alongside US envoys, with Qatari mediators playing the essential role of trusted intermediary.
