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Saudi Arabia and allies to discuss Qatar crisis in Cairo
Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are to discuss the Qatar crisis, a month after they severed ties with the Gulf state
The nations issued a 13-point list of demands on 22 June, giving Qatar 10 days to comply
Saudi Arabia and Arab allies that have cut ties with Qatar will hold talks in Egypt on Wednesday on the Gulf diplomatic crisis, after Doha said their demands were impossible to meet.
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates said early on Wednesday it had received Qatar’s response to its demands for ending a diplomatic crisis gripping the Persian Gulf.
The demands to Qatar include shutting down Al-Jazeera news, scaling down ties with Iran, and expelling Turkish military forces based in the country and paying restitution. Qatar has called the list of demands "unrealistic and not actionable", adding that they were an affront to its sovereignty
Qatar’s response to the demands remains unclear.
The nations issued a 13-point list of demands on 22 June, giving Qatar 10 days to comply. They later extended the deadline by another 48 hours at the request of Kuwait, which has acted as a mediator to resolve the crisis. That deadline expired early Wednesday.
The quartet of Arab nations, who accuse Qatar of supporting extremism, said only that they would respond “in a timely manner”.
Qatar denies supporting extremists and has defended its warm relations with Iran, as the two countries share a massive undersea natural gas field.
Foreign ministers from the four countries that broke off diplomatic and trade relations with Qatar are due to meet in Cairo at noon on Wednesday. A press conference is expected afterwards.
The imposed restrictions have caused turmoil in the oil- and gas-rich nation, which is dependent on imports to meet the basic needs of its population of 2.7 million.
The crisis has become a global concern because neither side appears to be backing down. Qatar, the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, hosts some 10,000 American troops at its sprawling al-Udeid air base.
The nations could impose financial sanctions or force Qatar out of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a regional body known as the GCC that serves as a counterbalance to Iran.
