Qatar seeks West’s help to end Gulf boycott

CAIRO – 2 August 2017: As the Gulf crisis escalates every day, Qatar faces more risks threatening its political and economic system, while the four countries leading the boycott against Qatar are now stepping up pressure.

The peninsular country continues to seek aid from the western powers and organizations, aiming to resolve the Gulf rift that prompted some multinational businesses operating in Qatar to review their presence in the country.

“Qatar is a valuable market for us and we want to continue here, but it has become difficult, and if there's no improvement, we will have to review our strategy [in Qatar],” Express quoted a commercial manager at a European construction services company as saying.

Amid the continuing pressure imposed by the Anti-Terror Quartet (ATQ), consisting of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain, Qatar asked the United Nations to have a greater role in resolving its standoff with the ATQ after U.S. and U.K. efforts to find a solution among the parties reached an impasse.

Qatar has also filed a legal complaint at the World Trade Organization (WTO) to challenge a trade boycott by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE.

“By formally requesting consultations with the three countries, Qatar aims to discuss and clarify the legality of these measures and find a way to bring them into conformity with their commitments," said Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.

Since the outbreak of the dispute, Al Thani has held several meetings with high-level international officials and foreign ministers of major western countries.

He held consequent telephone conversations on Monday with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, German FM Ziegmar Gabriel, French FM Jean-Yves Le Drian and U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.

Al Thani discussed bilateral relations with the international officials, as well as the developments of the Gulf crisis, demanding their intervention to defuse the dispute.

Qatar’s relations with several Arab states have been strained since May 24 over a leaked statement attributed to Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani criticizing Gulf foreign policy with Iran, which he described as “unwise”.

On June 5, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain cut diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed economic sanctions, accusing it of funding terrorism, a claim Qatar rejects. They also closed their airspace and seaports to Qatari transportation.

The Arab quartet issued 13 demands to Doha – then shortened to six principles - including closing Al Jazeera television, curbing relations with Iran and closing a Turkish military base.