Kurdish Leader Acts as Secret US-Iran Mediator Amid Tensions Over Strait of Hormuz

In the early weeks of the conflict, US negotiators faced uncertainty about who truly represented Iran, as the Revolutionary Guards' influence grew but official Iranian spokespeople did not necessarily reflect the regime's stance. To address this, the Trump administration engaged directly with Iran's leadership through a unique intermediary, Nechirvan Barzani, the Kurdish leader from Iraq who speaks fluent Persian and has personal ties with senior Iranian officials, including the Revolutionary Guards.

Barzani was described by former US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk as a pragmatic problem solver respected in both Tehran and Washington. In early May, US National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard initiated contact with Barzani, who then arranged encrypted phone calls with General Ahmad Vahidi, commander of the Revolutionary Guards. Vahidi expressed a preference to resolve the crisis through negotiations, a message relayed promptly to the White House.

Despite efforts to leverage this channel for secret talks between US and Iranian officials, concerns over Israeli intelligence surveillance prevented meetings in Iraq. Ultimately, the negotiations collapsed. Barzani has since offered to help revive talks, but McGurk noted that Iran's policy regarding the Strait of Hormuz remains a major obstacle unlikely to change soon.

President Trump recently declared plans to designate the Strait of Hormuz as US territory and vowed severe economic measures against Iran. Iranian officials, including Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, rejected US threats, asserting Iran alone controls the strait and denying any decision to resume talks with the US. Meanwhile, Brigadier General Reza Nekadi, senior adviser to Vahidi, claimed Iran is winning the conflict due to US strategic confusion and suggested prolonging the war until a new US president is sworn in.

This complex backchannel highlights the challenges in US-Iran diplomacy amid escalating tensions over the strategic waterway and ongoing regional conflict.