Qatar PM Hails MoU at Switzerland Meeting as Regional Turning Point

Qatar’s prime minister told participants at a high-level meeting in Burgenstock, Switzerland, that an MoU signed earlier in the week marked a landmark achievement and could mark a turning point toward regional stability. He said the past period had been among the most difficult the region has witnessed, with peoples bearing heavy burdens due to uncertainty and escalation.

He added that the work does not end with the signing of an MoU and that technical talks would be critical to translating commitments into tangible outcomes.

Iranian negotiator Hussein Gurbanzadeh told state television that today’s negotiations with the United States covered Iran’s frozen assets and arrangements for their release. He said discussions in Switzerland focused on a temporary exemption from sanctions on oil and its derivatives, and that the final draft of a proposal on this matter has been completed.

U.S. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said he spent four and a half hours with President Trump on Friday and outlined the administration’s fallback strategy. Graham stated that if the deal with Iran fails, President Trump is going to take the Strait of Hormuz over by force and the United States will control it and charge a fee for passage.

Iran’s parliament speaker and head negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf posted on X that Tehran is prepared to respond if necessary and that Iran’s armed forces are ready to respond in a different way.

Supreme Leader’s adviser Mohammad Mokhbar told Fars news agency that Tehran will seek to change some of the rules regulating the Strait of Hormuz within the framework of legal and international mechanisms. Hezbollah rejected the Lebanese government’s direct talks with the United States, stating the negotiations would undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty and serve Israeli interests.