Qatar seeks to play role of mediator.. For these reasons the Iranian President visits Doha

17th February 2022

2 minutes read

FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020 file photo, released by an official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, meets Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in Tehran, Iran. A flurry of diplomatic visits and meetings crisscrossing the Persian Gulf are driving urgent efforts to defuse the possibility of all-out war after the U.S. killed Iran's top military commander. Global leaders and top diplomats are repeating in recent days the mantra of “de-escalation” and “dialogue,” yet none have publicly laid out a path to achieving either. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)

Qatar continues to be a strong supporter of the Iranian regime, despite Tehran’s pouring funds to terrorist militias in the region.

This role went beyond the idea of normalizing Qatar’s relationship with Iran to an attempt to mediate between Tehran and Washington regarding the nuclear issue, which explains the expected visit of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi this weekend to the State of Qatar to attend the summit of major natural gas exporters that will be held there.

Real reasons for the visit

Informed Qatari sources revealed that Raisi’s visit to Qatar comes in the context of a request for mediation to ease the nuclear sanctions by the United States.

The sources added that the talks come after the visit of the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad to Washington in early February, during which he talked with American President Joe Biden about the need to ease the sanctions on Tehran.

Bin Hamad’s mediation during his time in the United States was not secret, as it was announced and confirmed by Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdulrahman Al-Thani, which coincided with the terrorist attack launched by the pro-Iranian Houthi militia against Abu Dhabi Airport. Instead of condemning Iran’s continued support and funding of terrorist militias, Tamim chose to request protection for his ally, Iran.

Qatar wants to play mediator between Iran and America

Qatar has begun its preparations to enter the line of the Iranian nuclear file, to play the role of mediator between Tehran and Washington amid tensions between the two parties, AFP reported.
The French news agency relied on a visit by Qatari Foreign Minister Sheik Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani to Iran in February.

Abdulrahman Al-Thani met with his then-Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, about a week before Tehran is expected to make a new move as part of a series of withdrawals from the nuclear deal if the United States does not lift the sanctions it re-imposed on Tehran, following Washington’s unilateral withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in 2018.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the Qatari minister conveyed Doha’s readiness to play a role in resolving outstanding issues within regional initiatives.

Observers believe that this mediation will support Iran’s regional power, at a time when Arab countries are seeking to take a unified position to prevent the flow of Iranian money and weapons to its militias in Yemen, Lebanon, and Iraq.