William K. Grant

Former career diplomat, 30+ years, mostly Middle East. Connecticut native

[Simba Walker @SimbaWalker6x]

The last time Spain won the World Cup, UConn won the national championship the following spring.

The last time Argentina won the World Cup, UConn won the national championship the following spring.

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Once again, an embassy DCM (deputy chief of mission) resolves the problem. His name is David Brownstein, a career foreign service officer. @StateDept_NEA #usembassyjlm

[Jacob Magid @JacobMagid]

"I don't know if we would have gotten out unharmed if it weren't for his intervention," Khanna said, explaining that deputy US amb had reached someone senior in Israeli gov who dispatched security forces to the scene to disperse the settlers who had held up his convoy. (16/29)

[Ziad Daoud @ZiadMDaoud]

Qatar’s former emir, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, has died

He took power in 1995

A year later, Qatar shipped its first liquefied natural gas cargo & launched Al Jazeera

One built its fortune; the other projected its influence
https://t.co/YcPPbWMbLJ

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Sheikh Hamad's legacy includes starting the longterm strategic alliance with the U.S. that has bolstered American diplomatic and miltary goals for 20+ years. Sending condolences to friends in #Qatar

[Al Jazeera English @AJEnglish]

Qatar’s Father Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani has died at the age of 74. During his 18 years in power, he transformed Qatar into a global energy, diplomatic and media powerhouse. Al Jazeera's Mohammed Jamjoom looks back at his life and legacy.

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Good, given Syria-Lebanon history.

[Middle East Institute @MiddleEastInst]

A blunt assessment by @Charles_Lister from our latest briefing:

"The idea that Syria could or should militarily intervene in Lebanon is an absolute non-starter in Damascus... This is still a country that can barely pay its own public-sector salaries. This is not a country that's prepared to go to war across a nation-state border." https://t.co/pTidFXyHFq

[الخارجية القطرية @MofaQatar_AR]

رئيس مجلس الوزراء وزير الخارجية @MBA_AlThani_ يستقبل المفوض السامي للأمم المتحدة لشؤون اللاجئين

الدوحة | 09 يوليو 2026

استقبل معالي الشيخ محمد بن عبد الرحمن بن جاسم آل ثاني، رئيس مجلس الوزراء وزير الخارجية، سعادة الدكتور برهم صالح، المفوض السامي للأمم المتحدة لشؤون اللاجئين، الذي يزور البلاد حالياً.

جرى خلال المقابلة، استعراض علاقات التعاون بين دولة قطر والمفوضية السامية للأمم المتحدة لشؤون اللاجئين، وسبل دعمها وتعزيزها، بالإضافة إلى عدد من الموضوعات ذات الاهتمام المشترك.

#الخارجية_القطرية

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Ending a 2 week Canada/Maine vacation in Portland, Maine, which has become uber hipster. Espresso served just like a bar in Rome

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

I work with Amal and Ameer. They are terrific, hardworking people who came from Iraq on the special visas (SIVs) for those who worked with US forces. Example of how US should act.
https://t.co/1eFuyrYlaC

[Bill Kristol @BillKristol]

Donald Trump and Taylor Swift BOTH upstaged by Cape Verde.

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Hear, hear.

[Kim Ghattas @KimGhattas]

I explain to @RichardEngel why Lebanon is not failed state, even tho state doesn't have control over all territory. We have strong president, great prime minister, no breakdown in law&order, great education, hospital sector. But also, great people who keep the country going...

[David J. Bier @David_J_Bier]

The Archdiocese of Miami announced that it employs many TPS holders as health care workers, and the Trump administration is forcing them to be fired and sent back to Haiti, where they could be killed. Why not let them stay and save our lives instead?

[Phil Gordon @PhilGordonDC]

Spin is one thing, but it is worth noting that virtually everything Vance says about the JCPOA in this clip is wildly misleading or outright false:

1. "The Gulf Coast Coalition loves this deal." (The "Gulf Coast" is in the southern US along the Gulf of Mexico but he is presumably referring here to the Gulf Cooperation Council or GCC.) GCC states don't "love this deal" but support it to end the war that Trump started that led to thousands of attacks on their countries and shut off their exports.

2. "The Obama deal allowed enrichment, ours will not." The Obama deal allowed enrichment that was strictly limited in level, amount, location and types of centrifuges, and carefully monitored by the IAEA. The Trump MOU says nothing about enrichment except that Iran "agreed to discuss the issue...related to Iran's nuclear needs."

3. "The Obama deal allowed the accumulation of stockpiles of weapons-grade material, ours is actually leading to the destruction of that stockpile of enriched material." ??? The Obama deal did not allow the accumulation of any enriched uranium, let alone "weapons-grade material." In fact, the JCPOA required Iran to ship out 98% of all its enriched uranium, leaving it with no more than 300kg of LEU. It was only after Trump tore up that deal that Iran was free to expand that stockpile to thousands of kg, and to start accumulating 60% highly enriched uranium, 400kg of which is still in Iran. All the MOU says about that is that the US and Iran "have agreed to resolve" its disposition and that this will be done "on-site" (not in the US as Trump promised) and does not say to what level.

4. "The Obama deal gave them over a billion dollars of American money." Once again simply false. The JCPOA unfroze some of Iran's own assets and suspended oil sanctions in exchange for comprehensive and nuclear commitments, and did so only after the IAEA had verified their implementation. The Trump MOU gives Iran "immediate" waivers for exports not just of oil but of derivatives and associated services, commits to making frozen assets available without restrictions, and pledges to develop a $300 bn fund for reconstruction and development in Iran. It also undertakes, in any final nuclear deal, to terminate "all types of sanctions" against Iran, which include sanctions for human rights abuses, ballistic missile production, and sponsorship of terrorism.

It's one thing to try to sell an agreement that even your own supporters consider astonishingly weak. It's quite another to try to mislead the American people with blatant distortion of the facts.

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Sounds like when he laid into Zelenskyy from the sofa.

[Robbie Gramer @RobbieGramer]

"Anybody in Israel who thinks their biggest problem is the president. of the United States needs to wake up and smell the reality of the situation that country is in"

[Mal @UtdMaI]

Last night in Boston, Aymen Hussein scored for Iraq;

At 12, his father was killed by Al-Qaeda.
At 18, his brother was kidnapped by ISIS

At 20, he helped Iraq qualify for the Olympics.
At 30, his decisive goal sent Iraq to their first World Cup in 40 years.

He was detained for seven hours at O’Hare International Airport and nearly denied entry into the United States.

In his very first World Cup match, he scored against Norway.

Some stories are bigger than football!

[Dr Andreas Krieg @andreas_krieg]

"The Qataris are the best diplomats in the region,” one U.S. official said. Qatar’s credibility with the Trump administration gave it leverage in Tehran: “By empowering them, the people in Iran who wanted to make a deal took them seriously,” the official said"
https://t.co/qEV4iXbEjq

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Offside rule makes no sense. Argentina-Algeria should be 1-1 now after two terrific plays leading to goals. @FIFAWorldCup

[𝓟𝓐𝓣 🗽 @Darts2Leek]

4’ | MESSI SCORES… BUT IT WON’T COUNT! 🚫⚽

A brilliant team move ends with 𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐋 𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐈 finishing at the near post, but the flag goes up for offside! 😱

#Argentina 0 - 0 #Algeria https://t.co/0zgBhfxsFY

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

And they might also be threatened by prospect of a deal to end conflict with Iran which Qataris are trying to broker.

[Hamad AlMuftah @hmmm1983]

As strategic ties between Qatar & the U.S. reach new heights, those threatened by this alliance are working overtime to tarnish it.

This partnership is not incidental — it is essential to advancing global peace, regional security, and economic prosperity for both nations.

The anti-Qatar/U.S. network of operatives has been fully mobilized.

But as I’ve said before: same actors. Same masters. Same recycled narratives.

The American public is discerning and not easily misled — yet this disinformation machine will keep spinning within its own echo chamber, preaching to a shrinking choir.

The truth speaks for itself. The alliance stands. 🇦

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

Some hours after this, President Trump pulled down the attacks on Iran he'd announced. No wonder @FDD is worried.

[Mostafa Salem @MostafaSalemCNN]

A Qatari delegation departed Tehran this morning after overnight talks with Iranian officials, a diplomatic source with knowledge of the situation told CNN.

The negotiations lasted into the early hours of this morning, the source said.

The delegation was in Tehran as the US was striking Iran overnight.

[William K. Grant @WilliamGrant22]

This gives a hint why @FDD and allies have revived their over-the-top campaign against Qatar: to undermine recent Qatari efforts to broker a deal with Iran.

[Jonathan Schanzer @JSchanzer]

I cannot understand how Qatar has a role to play here. This terror-sponsoring micro-state has done enough damage. Cut it out of the diplomatic mix already. Let’s find a better middle man. There are 189 other countries from which we can choose. https://t.co/b7Uispv4T2

[Hamad AlMuftah @hmmm1983]

For years, @FDD and its network of anti-Qatar voices have tried to disparage the Qatar–U.S.

Their latest effort was a "report" by @NatalieEcanow detailing what she described as our vast footprint in the United States. Ironically, the report largely documented billions of dollars in investment supporting American jobs, American industries, American institutions, and American communities.

Defense partnerships. Energy projects. Boeing orders. Infrastructure contracts. Disaster relief. Medical innovation. Sports and cultural initiatives. Investments in technology and the future of the American economy

The examples highlighted in the report align directly with @POTUS' stated goal of attracting investment into the United States!!! Invest in America. Create jobs for Americans. Grow the American economy.

What's perhaps most interesting is what didn't happen. There was no national outrage. No sustained public fervor. No widespread demand to unwind these partnerships. Because when people looked at what was actually being described, they see many examples of constructive engagement between two ALLIES.

Falling flat... these same actors have returned to flashy memes, old allegations, and spammed disinformation campaigns targeting Qatar and longstanding educational initiatives. They now seek to claim credit for Qatar Foundation International's decision to conclude its work in the United States. That claim is simply inaccurate.

QFI's decision was its own. For years, its programs supported Arabic language education for American students to broaden their understanding of another part of the world. The organization chose to redirect its efforts toward other regions where it believes this work is needed most.

Critics often accuse Qatar of operating in the shadows. Yet the information cited in this report was overwhelmingly drawn from PUBLICLY AVAILABLE sources. No hidden records were uncovered. No secret funding streams exposed. Qatar's investments, partnerships, and advocacy efforts are disclosed and transparent.

That includes lobbying. Like many countries, companies, and organization we have registered representatives under U.S. law. Their work is public, regulated, and focused on strengthening understanding of an important bilateral relationship while responding to persistent misinformation. We are proud to have them with us!

Always seek the facts. Read the source material for yourself. Make your own judgments.

Examples below