Qatar offered Iran secret deal to avoid energy infrastructure strikes: report

Qatar allegedly proposed a secret agreement to Iran, offering to cease gas production to prevent attacks on its vital energy infrastructure, according to a report by The Washington Post citing Middle Eastern and Western officials. The aim of this clandestine offer was reportedly to leverage global energy prices, thereby increasing pressure on the United States and Israel to de-escalate the ongoing conflict.

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You will achieve your objectives without striking us.

The report states that Qatar's Ras Laffan gas complex was indeed hit by an Iranian missile attack in March, causing significant damage. One official described Qatar's message to Iran as: “You will achieve your objectives without striking us.” This move was seen as an attempt by Qatar to protect its facilities from damage that could take a decade to repair, with intelligence suggesting communications between unnamed Iranian officials.

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to avoid damage that would probably take 10 years to recover

However, Qatar has vehemently denied the existence of such a deal. The country's international media office stated that the closure of the Ras Laffan plant in early March was solely due to security and safety concerns. They called the report an attempt to

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of how hedging works behind the scenes with Gulf states and their communications with Iran.