The American delegation in Doha did not get their contacts to meet with the Iranians, Qatar said

On Sunday night, a US official said both sides would “stand down for now” and that ships could “move freely” in and around the strait. Technical discussions will continue on all aspects of the MoU, the official added.

The next day, Iran’s deputy foreign minister and chief technical negotiator, Kazem Gharibabadi, denied any plans to hold technical talks this week.

In response, US President Donald Trump said Iran had requested a meeting in the Qatari capital on Tuesday, and White House Press Secretary Carolyn Levitt announced that Witkoff and Kushner would fly to Doha for “senior meetings”.

On Tuesday, a spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry told a news conference that the two US envoys had arrived in Doha to talk to mediators, but not Iranian officials.

“The talks will be held around all the regional issues that are of concern, including the negotiations with Iran and Lebanon and other files in the region.

“So they’re not here to negotiate directly with the Iranians or have related meetings.”

“As far as I know, there is no direct meeting planned between the two sides in the coming days,” he added.

Ansari confirmed that the technical talks between the lower officials are continuing and he may be elevated to the higher level later.

“We have a track on the nuclear side. We have a track on the issue of economy and government performance. We have a track on security and regional security,” he said.

He said the release of $6bn (£4.5bn) of Iranian assets embargoed by Qatar was dependent on progress in talks between the US and Iran.

Iran’s president said on Monday that steps to release the money were “in progress.”