Qatari FM says Iranian leaders open to compromise on nuclear file, al Jazeera TV reports
/cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com/reuters/SGTSR4FJ45KRRG3UCDTS5WBJUE.jpg)
May 21 (Reuters) – Qatar’s foreign minister said in remarks quoted by al Jazeera TV on Saturday that Iran’s leaders said they were ready to compromise on “the Iranian nuclear file”, referring to the stimulus talks of a nuclear deal between Iran and the world powers.
But Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s remarks were mistranslated by mistake or on purpose for propaganda purposes, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.
Qatar-based television quoted Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani as saying reaching common ground would boost stability in the Gulf region and help oil markets.
Join now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com
“Pumping more Iranian oil into the market will help stabilize crude prices and reduce inflation,” the minister said.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh told Tasnim: “The Supreme Leader made no remarks about a compromise, but told the Emir of Qatar: ‘We have always said that the negotiations had to be productive and not a waste of time “to do about it.”
“It is clear from the context of the leader’s remarks that (he meant) the ball is in the court of the United States, which needs to make a wise political decision to fulfill its obligations,” Khatibzadeh said.
On Friday, Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani – who met Khamenei during a visit to Iran in early May – expressed optimism that a deal could be reached between the states. States and Iran, declaring its readiness to help in this matter.
Iran and the United States have held indirect talks over the past year to revive Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, but talks have stalled.
Tehran has repeatedly said that Washington should make the political decision to respect Iran’s “red lines”, including removing the Revolutionary Guards from a US terrorism blacklist.
Join now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com
Reporting by Moaz Abd-Alaziz and Dubai Newsroom Editing by Frances Kerry and Nick Zieminski
Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.