Trump touts progress in U.S.-Iran talks as nuclear issues remain unresolved

Donald Trump said the U.S.-Iran talks were making progress even as the latest round in Doha closed without a deal on the core nuclear issue. H. R. McMaster, Trump’s former national security adviser, has sharpened the criticism, warning that Iran could gain leverage if Washington moves too quickly on side issues.

The negotiations in Doha, Qatar, were indirect technical discussions carried out through mediators. The immediate agenda was narrow but consequential: maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and the unfreezing of Iranian funds. That is the practical tradeoff now on the table, money and shipping pressure on one side, limits on Iran’s nuclear program on the other.

Qatar’s foreign ministry said positive progress was made on issues tied to the memorandum of understanding that halted the war in June. U.S. officials said the next meeting is expected after funeral processions for Iran’s former Supreme Leader, who is due to be buried on July 9. Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were in Doha but did not attend the technical sessions.

Trump struck an upbeat note, telling reporters that “The denuclearization of Iran is moving along well,” but Vice President JD Vance said the nuclear question had not yet been fully addressed in the Doha talks. That split matters because the difference between a strong agreement and a weak one is concrete: a good deal would pair sanctions relief and access to frozen funds with verifiable limits on enrichment and stricter guardrails on regional security; a bad one would ease pressure on Tehran first and leave the hard nuclear terms for later.

For Trump, the political value is clear. He can point to movement in a sensitive channel with Iran and to visible diplomacy in Qatar. For McMaster and other skeptics, the risk is just as clear: if the United States concedes on money, shipping, or other peripheral terms before locking down enrichment limits, Iran gets the benefit of progress without the constraint that would make the deal durable.