Trump says Iran-US talks making progress as nuclear discussions continue

President Donald Trump on Wednesday expressed optimism over indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran, saying discussions in Doha had made positive progress.

Speaking to reporters before boarding a new Qatar-provided Air Force One aircraft for a trip to North Dakota, Trump said efforts toward preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons were moving in the right direction.

"As far as things are going, the denuclearisation of Iran is moving along well. They've had very good meetings, and we'll see," Trump told reporters as he prepared to board his new Qatar-gifted Air Force One plane for a trip to North Dakota.

"We hit them very hard... but we're getting along very well," he said of the talks, which are aimed at quelling tensions following exchanges of fire between the two sides.

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The US and Iran held technical talks in the Qatari capital of Doha on Wednesday as they seek to ‌agree on the flow of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and secure a lasting ceasefire, a source with direct knowledge of the talks and an Iranian official said.

Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff met the prime minister of Qatar — a mediator in the talks alongside Pakistan — to lay groundwork for the ​negotiations,  but would not be attending the discussions themselves, the source with direct knowledge of the talks said.

Meanwhile, a ship ran aground in the Strait of Hormuz while using a route not approved by Iran, state television in Tehran reported Wednesday. The vessel was identified as a foreign container ship, with no other details.

Iran and the United States had agreed as part of an interim deal to allow ships to pass uncharged for 60 days, but Tehran insisted it must control the routes of the vessels and later charge fees for passage, upending decades of practice in the waterway.

The U.S. and many Gulf Arab states say they won't agree to the charges. An effort by Oman and a U.N. agency to launch a new route near Oman's shore sparked attacks across the Mideast over last weekend, highlighting the tensions.

Iranian state TV on Wednesday said the ship “ran aground with its cargo because of shallow waters along the route it had chosen and was unable to continue sailing.” It said shippers needed to follow the instructions of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in the strait.

The Guard's navy “has repeatedly warned captains, shipowners and officials of shipping companies around the world that any entry or exit through routes other than the ‘Route of Authority’ in the Persian Gulf could lead to irreparable incidents,” it said.

The report did not mention the two ships Iran attacked in recent days for daring to head out through the strait without Tehran's permission, including one carrying crude oil from Qatar.

Witkoff and Kushner arrived in Qatar on Tuesday ahead of talks, with Qatar mediating. While Iran has said it planned no meetings with the Americans, there was the possibility of so-called “indirect negotiations,” in which the nations pass messages through Qatari officials. That has happened multiple times during negotiations in the second Trump administration.

Qatar early Wednesday acknowledged a meeting between the Americans and its foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. A readout from Qatar's Foreign Ministry said the men talked about the interim deal “along with the efforts aimed at promoting security and stability in the region through dialogue and diplomacy.”

Sheikh Mohammed also met with Gharibabadi and other Iranian officials. An Iranian statement said they discussed “the implementation process of the memorandum of understanding on ending the imposed war, as well as the existing challenges and obstacles to its implementation.” Pakistani mediators also were on hand.

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a key negotiator, told Iranian state television overnight that work continues to try to reach a permanent end to the war.

“We are engaged in dialogue, but if they refuse to implement what has been agreed through dialogue, we are prepared for war,” Qalibaf said.

Lebanon is another key point in a final deal. Iran has insisted that all fighting between the Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah and Israeli military forces there end.

Iran also has called for Israel to give up the land it occupies in southern Lebanon now. Israel insists it must hold the territory and have a free hand to attack Hezbollah, which has been launching attacks into northern Israel.

While ship traffic in the strait dropped after this weekend's attacks, more countries say their vessels have gotten out.

Thailand’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that 10 out of 11 Thai-flagged vessels or vessels chartered by Thai operators have departed the Strait of Hormuz safely. South Korean officials say all but two of the country’s 26 vessels that were stranded have left safely.

Also Wednesday, Iraqi authorities shot down a small drone over Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, where many embassies and government buildings are located, two Iraqi security officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly. One of the officials said the drone was unarmed and likely was being used for surveillance. No group immediately claimed the drone as theirs.

After the U.S. and Israel launched their war on Iran in late February, Iranian-backed Iraqi militias launched frequent attacks on U.S. military and diplomatic facilities in Iraq. The drone being shot down overnight Wednesday was the first security incident in Baghdad since the U.S. and Iran agreed to a ceasefire.

With inputs from agencies