Trump to meet Qatar’s prime minister as Iran diplomacy faces hurdles

President Donald Trump will meet with Qatar's prime minister at the White House on Monday, ​according to the White House schedule, as the ‌conflict with Iran drags on and diplomatic efforts to end it face significant obstacles.

Trump is due to meet with Sheikh ​Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, who also serves as ​Qatar's foreign minister, in a closed-door meeting. ⁠Vice President JD Vance is also scheduled to ​meet with the Qatari leader, according to a US ​official.

Qatar has played a central role as an intermediary between Washington and Tehran, conveying proposals and seeking to bridge ​differences over Iran's nuclear program and the terms ​for ending the conflict.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday ‌that ⁠negotiations with Iran had made little progress and that he did not see an imminent breakthrough.

Speaking before departing Florida for a G7 foreign ministers meeting ​in Paris, ​Rubio said ⁠Trump preferred a diplomatic solution but described Iran's demands as "unacceptable" and, in some ​cases, "outrageous and ridiculous, and really not ​realistic."

Trump said ⁠Sunday that he was highly unlikely to order new strikes against Iran if negotiations made progress and produced a ⁠strong ​agreement, but warned that the ​United States had identified additional infrastructure targets, including bridges, should military ​action resume.