Mar 13, 2022: According to a report by AFP, Qatar’s foreign minister headed Sunday for Moscow for talks on Russia’s obstruction of a new Iran nuclear deal and on the Ukraine conflict, a source familiar with the matter said.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani was to meet Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and other top officials on Monday according to the source.

Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed left just hours after speaking with U.S Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian about Russia’s new demands on the Iran talks, which Moscow has linked to sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine.

After months of negotiations in Vienna, Western countries are agonisingly close to renewing a 2015 deal on regulating Iran’s nuclear programme. The U.S unilaterally withdrew from the accord in 2018 and Iran has since rolled back on its commitments.

However, talks have stalled again after Russia demanded assurances that Western sanctions imposed after its invasion of Ukraine would not harm its trade with Iran. Qatar, a neighbor of Iran with close ties to Washington, is stepping up efforts to persuade the United States and Iran to move toward a new agreement.

In terms of contacts, Sheikh Mohammed also discussed Iran’s agreement with France and Germany this week, and spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, on Sunday. Sources said Qatar was not mediating in the Ukraine conflict but was willing to do so if asked. In a statement, Sheikh Mohammed called on Russia and Ukraine to show “restraint”

Like Saudi Arabia, Qatar is an ally of both the U.S and Russia. While hosting American troops, its economic and political relations with Russia have grown over the years.

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