Pakistan said on Tuesday that the United States and Iran were close to “some kind” of agreement, and fellow mediator Qatar said talks on managing the Strait of Hormuz were at an advanced stage, despite reports of new attacks on ships in regional waters.
In an interview with Bloomberg News, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said that “things are taking shape again in favor of a peace agreement.”
“The signals in the last two or three days are that we are close to some kind of agreement,” he added.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi met with Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on Tuesday.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman said at a press conference earlier on Tuesday that separate discussions between Oman and Iran over the management of the Strait of Hormuz were at an advanced stage.
Pakistan and Qatar have been the main mediators in the conflict that has killed thousands of people – mostly in Iran and Lebanon – since the US and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28. Iran has retaliated by striking US assets and infrastructure in countries including Oman, Jordan, Kuwait, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.