• US officials in Qatar: Meetings in Doha through mediators between US and Iranian negotiators made “positive progress” on Wednesday with issues tied to the memorandum of understanding, and both sides agreed to continue discussions, Qatar said.
• Indirect US-Iran talks: Low-level, technical talks are also underway as US and Iranian officials talk indirectly through Qatari and Pakistani mediators, a diplomatic source told CNN. Vice President JD Vance said discussions about the nuclear issue would start soon.
• Missing crew: The US Navy is searching for a missing crew member after a helicopter made an emergency landing in the Arabian Sea, underscoring the ongoing risks troops face even as talks halt fighting.
• Tehran’s warning: Iran threatened an “immediate powerful response” to any Israeli attack and called on the US to restrain its ally, after Israel’s defense minister reportedly said Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was “marked for death.”
3 Posts
A spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that separate indirect meetings in Doha between US and Iranian negotiators made “positive progress” on issues tied to the memorandum of understanding, and that both sides have agreed to continue discussions.
The spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said in a post on X that the next meeting would be scheduled “at the earliest possible time” after funeral processions for Iran’s former supreme leader.
Funeral ceremonies are planned for July 4 through July 9.
Here’s what else to know:
Vance also told CNN’s Adam Cancryn on Wednesday that as technical negotiators sit down with the Iranians and Qataris, “we’re worried about the nuclear issue, we’re going to start talking about that, so right now the talks are going well.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that his country would launch an “immediate powerful response” to any Israeli attack and repeated demands for the United States to restrain its ally.
The US military commander overseeing forces in the Middle East spoke with other regional military officials Wednesday to discuss “the current regional security environment,” including the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command announced.
And the US Navy is searching for a missing aircrew member after an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter went down on Wednesday in the Arabian Sea, the service announced. It is unclear what caused the crash.
The US Navy is searching for a missing aircrew member after an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter went down on Wednesday in the Arabian Sea, the service announced.
The helicopter assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush “conducted an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea. There is no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action,” a post on X from US Naval Forces Central Command said.
It’s unclear what caused the crash.
The social media post said the incident is under investigation.
Oman has outlined a plan for shipping companies to pay service fees to transit the Strait of Hormuz, pointing to the straits of Malacca and Singapore as a possible blueprint.
Context: The Malacca and Singapore straits are vital shipping lanes in Southeast Asia running between Malaysia, Singapore and the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
By July 2023, the fund had received contributions totaling only around $23 million, according to Singapore’s port authority, about a third of which came from the Nippon Foundation.
“I don’t know of anyone, beyond Japanese interests, that pay such a fee,” Peter Sand, chief analyst at freight intelligence firm Xeneta, told CNN.
The Hormuz revenue would also be for purposes unrelated to the waterway itself, including rebuilding Iran, he noted.
Michelle Brouhard, head of policy at shipping intelligence firm Kpler, said there are other examples of natural straits that charge navigation and security fees, such as the Strait of Magellan in Chile.
• US officials in Qatar: Meetings in Doha through mediators between US and Iranian negotiators made “positive progress” on Wednesday with issues tied to the memorandum of understanding, and both sides agreed to continue discussions, Qatar said.
• Indirect US-Iran talks: Low-level, technical talks are also underway as US and Iranian officials talk indirectly through Qatari and Pakistani mediators, a diplomatic source told CNN. Vice President JD Vance said discussions about the nuclear issue would start soon.
• Missing crew: The US Navy is searching for a missing crew member after a helicopter made an emergency landing in the Arabian Sea, underscoring the ongoing risks troops face even as talks halt fighting.
• Tehran’s warning: Iran threatened an “immediate powerful response” to any Israeli attack and called on the US to restrain its ally, after Israel’s defense minister reportedly said Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was “marked for death.”
A spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that separate indirect meetings in Doha between US and Iranian negotiators made “positive progress” on issues tied to the memorandum of understanding, and that both sides have agreed to continue discussions.
The spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said in a post on X that the next meeting would be scheduled “at the earliest possible time” after funeral processions for Iran’s former supreme leader.
Funeral ceremonies are planned for July 4 through July 9.
Here’s what else to know:
Vance also told CNN’s Adam Cancryn on Wednesday that as technical negotiators sit down with the Iranians and Qataris, “we’re worried about the nuclear issue, we’re going to start talking about that, so right now the talks are going well.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that his country would launch an “immediate powerful response” to any Israeli attack and repeated demands for the United States to restrain its ally.
The US military commander overseeing forces in the Middle East spoke with other regional military officials Wednesday to discuss “the current regional security environment,” including the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command announced.
And the US Navy is searching for a missing aircrew member after an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter went down on Wednesday in the Arabian Sea, the service announced. It is unclear what caused the crash.
The US Navy is searching for a missing aircrew member after an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter went down on Wednesday in the Arabian Sea, the service announced.
The helicopter assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush “conducted an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea. There is no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action,” a post on X from US Naval Forces Central Command said.
It’s unclear what caused the crash.
The social media post said the incident is under investigation.
Oman has outlined a plan for shipping companies to pay service fees to transit the Strait of Hormuz, pointing to the straits of Malacca and Singapore as a possible blueprint.
Context: The Malacca and Singapore straits are vital shipping lanes in Southeast Asia running between Malaysia, Singapore and the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
By July 2023, the fund had received contributions totaling only around $23 million, according to Singapore’s port authority, about a third of which came from the Nippon Foundation.
“I don’t know of anyone, beyond Japanese interests, that pay such a fee,” Peter Sand, chief analyst at freight intelligence firm Xeneta, told CNN.
The Hormuz revenue would also be for purposes unrelated to the waterway itself, including rebuilding Iran, he noted.
Michelle Brouhard, head of policy at shipping intelligence firm Kpler, said there are other examples of natural straits that charge navigation and security fees, such as the Strait of Magellan in Chile.
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