US, Iran hold indirect talks on Red Sea attacks
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The U.S. and Iran held indirect talks earlier in 2024 about Yemen’s Houthi-aligned armed forces in the Red Sea, The Financial Times said on Friday.
The Financial Times cited officials from both sides as saying that the talks were brokered by Oman and they took place in January.
The U.S. delegation was led by the White House’s Middle East adviser, Brett McGurk, and its Iran envoy, Abram Paley, while Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Ali Bagheri Kani, who is also the country’s top nuclear negotiator, represented Iran.
As there are no diplomatic relations between the two countries, “Omani officials shuttled between the Iranian and American representatives so they did not speak directly,” officials told the newspaper.
The Biden administration sees indirect communication channels as “a method for raising the full range of threats emanating from Iran,” The Financial Times added. said, noting that the US negotiators conveyed to the Iranians “what they need to do in order to prevent a wider conflict, as they claim they want.”
The U.S. in particular and the West in general accuse Iran of arming and providing intelligence to the Houthis, but Iran says the group act independently. “Iran has repeatedly said it only has a form of spiritual influence. They can’t dictate to the Houthis, but they can negotiate and talk,” an Iranian official said.