Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (L) meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May in the capital Riyadh 4 April 2017 - AFP/Bandar al-Jaloud/Saudi Royal Palace
CAIRO – 8 March: Advisor to Saudi Royal Court Saud Al-Qahtani claimed that Qatar has been trying to ruin the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the UK, which began on Wednesday, March 7, by inciting people to protest against him.
In a tweet on his official account, Qahtani wrote that the Qataris were trying to ruin the visit in every possible way. “Their method has been always the same; whoever pays 300 pounds to mercenaries can send a missile to Houthi militia,” he wrote.
“These practices are just a small part of Doha’s regular and natural policies (which used to be secret), but now they are doing what they used to do publicly; accordingly, they lost their credibility,” Qahtani noted on his Twitter account.
Salman arrived in the UK on March 7, following the British government's former invitation. Foreign secretary Boris Johnson welcomed the Crown Prince at the airport, along with KSA Ambassador to the United Kingdom Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz, British Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Simon Collies and a number of high-profile delegates.
“The visit of HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman ushers a new era in our bilateral relations focused on a partnership that delivers wide-ranging benefits for both our countries,” the Foreign Office (FCO) tweeted in conjunction with the visit of the Crown Prince.
During his stay in the UK, a number of demonstrations broke against Saudi policies, especially in Yemen. The protests, however, were criticized by a number of the officials who accused Qatar of standing behind it.
Chairman of Saudi General Sports Authority Turki al-Sheikh also accused Qatar of paying bribes inciting those protesting Saudi Arabia’s polices during the visit.
“Anyone who is in need of money can participate in the UK protests against the Crown Prince. The tiny state pays quickly,” al-Sheikh wrote on his Twitter account on March 7.
Qatar’s policies are controversial to the Arab quartet, given its alleged support of terrorism. On June 5, 2017, Qatar was hit by its biggest diplomatic crisis in years after the Arab quartet’s decision to cut diplomatic ties with Doha and impose economic sanctions amid accusations of financing terrorism – a claim Qatar rejects. The Arab quartet halted all land, air and sea traffic to and from Qatar, and withdrew their diplomats and ambassadors from the country.
The Arab quartet issued 13 demands to Doha – later shortened to six principles – which included tuning down the voice of news channel Al-Jazeera, curbing relations with Iran, and not intervening in the internal affairs of Arab nations.
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