Qatar Presses Iran to Accept Deal as Regional Tensions Rise

Diplomatic efforts to end the war involving Iran intensified as Qatar delivered a new draft peace proposal to Tehran, while Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey pursued separate talks aimed at preventing further regional escalation. The negotiations seek to reduce hostilities, address security threats against Saudi Arabia and resolve disputes between Washington and Tehran over sanctions, maritime access and Iran's nuclear program.

Reuters reported Wednesday, October 28, citing an official briefed on the negotiations, that Qatari mediators handed Iran the draft on Sunday. Tehran is considering the proposal and is expected to respond by the end of the week, although the report did not establish whether the parties had reached an agreement.

Qatar's Foreign Ministry said its diplomatic contacts with Iran formed part of a broader mediation effort involving Pakistan and other regional partners. Ibrahim bin Sultan Al Hashmi, director of the ministry's Media and Communication Department, said messages and proposals were still being exchanged between the parties.

"We have heard positive statements from the Iranian side on this issue, but they still need to show goodwill," Al Hashmi said during a weekly briefing in Doha.

He said both Washington and Tehran had discussed the possibility of further escalation alongside prospects for a diplomatic settlement. Qatar has also called for Iran to stop threatening neighboring countries and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for Gulf oil and gas exports.

"The mediator always holds on to this window of hope," Al Hashmi said.

Iran's restrictions on shipping and the US blockade of Iranian ports have severely disrupted traffic through the strait. According to ANZ research cited in the October 27 report, crude oil flows through Hormuz had fallen to approximately 60% of normal levels, while Brent crude exceeded $117 per barrel the previous week following Iranian attacks on tankers near the waterway.

Regional security concerns also drove a high-level meeting in Tehran on Monday involving Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin. The delegation met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei, who hosted the four-way discussions.

Iranian state media reported that the four countries agreed to continue discussions on regional peace and security. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement in August, establishing a framework for collective security, but the latest talks produced no publicly announced agreement to stop attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis.

Mohamed Fahmy, a journalist and regional affairs analyst, characterized the delegation's approach as "coercive diplomacy" in comments to Iran International, arguing that negotiations were taking place alongside preparations for a possible military response.

"This may be the last chance before a collective imminent military action," Fahmy said.

He argued that the participating countries were attempting to exhaust diplomatic options while signaling that continued attacks could provoke a coordinated response.

"The main objective is pressure," Fahmy said.

Attacks attributed to the Houthis have placed additional strain on Saudi Arabia's security arrangements. The group claimed fresh attacks Monday on Saudi oil infrastructure and Riyadh airport, although Saudi authorities had not immediately confirmed those claims. The Saudi-led coalition also reported destroying Houthi missile infrastructure in Yemen.

Egypt's parliament authorized military support to help defend Saudi Arabia, potentially broadening the regional response. Professor Saad bin Tefla al-Ajmi, a former Kuwaiti information minister, told Iran International that the seniority of the visiting delegation demonstrated the importance neighboring countries placed on preventing another war.

Al-Ajmi said Tehran could interpret the diplomatic outreach either as recognition of Iran's regional influence or as an opportunity to pursue improved relations with neighboring states. He said the outcome would depend on how Iranian decision-makers viewed the negotiations.

"It depends on whose mind you are reading in Tehran now," al-Ajmi said.

Al-Ajmi also described Saudi Arabia's position toward the Houthis as increasingly firm after repeated attacks. He argued that Riyadh was seeking international diplomatic and political support while establishing that the kingdom had been subjected to aggression by the group and its Iranian backers.

"I think that they have made their mind that the Houthi will have to go and they can't take it anymore," al-Ajmi said.

Historian and political analyst Dr. Shahram Kholdi offered a more critical assessment of the security pact, arguing that it had not provided Saudi Arabia with sufficient protection against missile and drone attacks.

"The Mecca Pact has effectively been a paper tiger," Kholdi said.

Kholdi said the delegation's central objective was to persuade Tehran to restrain the Houthis, potentially alongside efforts to encourage Washington to reconsider conditions blocking renewed US-Iran negotiations. He cautioned that even an agreement to reduce attacks might not produce a lasting settlement because of disagreements over Yemen's political future and the security arrangements along Saudi Arabia's southern border.

Washington and Tehran remain divided over the terms of a broader agreement. Iran wants the US blockade of its ports lifted and sanctions on Iranian oil exports removed, while the United States is demanding reductions in Iran's nuclear enrichment. The war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.

The financial consequences are also mounting. According to an estimate from US Central Command obtained by CBS News, the war had cost the US military at least $47.1 billion as of mid-October, including approximately $29 billion to replace expended munitions. The estimate excluded damage to US military bases in the Middle East.

A September report from the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the conflict could cost approximately $2 billion to $3 billion per month for as long as the war continues. Meanwhile, the Qatari proposal remains under consideration in Tehran, with an Iranian response expected by the end of the week, according to Reuters.