Qatar diplomatic crisis
The Qatar diplomatic crisis was a high-profile incident involving the deterioration of ties between Qatar and the Arab League between 2017 and 2021. It began when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt simultaneously severed their bilateral relations with Qatar and subsequently banned Qatar-registered aircraft and Qatari ships from utilizing their sovereign territory by air, land, and sea; this involved the Saudis' closure of Qatar's only land crossing, initiating a de facto blockade of the country. Tensions between the two sides came to a close in January 2021, following a resolution between the Saudis and the Qataris.
The Saudi-led coalition cited Qatar's alleged support for terrorism as the main reason for their actions, alleging that Qatar had violated a 2014 agreement with the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), of which Qatar is a member.[8] Saudi Arabia and other countries have criticized Al Jazeera and Qatar's relations with Iran. Qatar explained that it had provided assistance to some opposition groups, including Islamist groups (such as the Muslim Brotherhood), but consistently negated aiding militant groups linked to al-Qaeda or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).[9] Qatar also emphasized that it had long assisted the United States in the War on Terror, especially via the Qatar-based Aludaid US military base, and the ongoing military intervention against ISIL.[10]
One day into the crisis, the Saudi-led coalition was joined by Jordan, and were further supported thereafter by the Maldives, Mauritania, Senegal, Djibouti, the Comoros, and the Tobruk-based government in Libya in severing relations with Qatar and closing the country's land routes for its food imports.[11][12] The demands against Qatar included reducing diplomatic relations with Iran, stopping military coordination with Turkey, and closing Al Jazeera; Qatar refused to agree to any of the Saudi-led coalition's demands.[13] Initial supply disruptions were minimised by additional imports from Iran, with which Qatar restored full diplomatic relations in August 2017,[14] and Turkey.[15]
On 4 January 2021, Qatar and Saudi Arabia agreed to a resolution of the crisis, brokered by Kuwait and the United States, which stated that Saudi Arabia will reopen its border with Qatar and begin the process for reconciliation.[7] An agreement and final communiqué signed on 5 January 2021 following a GCC summit at Al-'Ula marks the resolution of the crisis.[4] According to Oxford tutor Samuel Ramani in an article published in Foreign Policy, the crisis was a failure for Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt, because Qatar generated closer ties to Iran and Turkey, and became economically and militarily stronger and more autonomous.[16][17]
Severance of diplomatic and economic ties[edit]
Between 5 and 6 June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Yemen, Egypt, the Maldives, and Bahrain all separately announced that they were cutting diplomatic ties with Qatar; among these Bahrain was the first to announce the severing of ties at 02:50 GMT in the early morning of 5 June.[47][48][49][50][51]
A variety of diplomatic actions were taken. Saudi Arabia and the UAE notified ports and shipping agents not to receive Qatari vessels or ships owned by Qatari companies or individuals.[52] Saudi Arabia closed the border with Qatar.[52] Saudi Arabia closed its airspace to Qatar Airways. Instead, Qatar was forced to reroute flights to Africa and Europe through Iranian airspace.[53] Saudi Arabia's central bank advised banks not to trade with Qatari banks in Qatari riyals.[54] Additionally, Qatari citizens in those countries were required to return home to Qatar within two weeks.[19] All GCC countries involved in the announcement ordered their citizens out of Qatar.[55] Three Gulf states (Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Bahrain) gave Qatari visitors and residents two weeks to leave their countries.[56] The foreign ministries of Bahrain and Egypt gave Qatari diplomats 48 hours to leave.[57][50] Qatar was expelled from the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen and Yemen's government itself cut ties.[56] Kuwait and Oman remained neutral.[58]
The Foreign Ministry of Qatar criticized the ban, arguing that it undermined Qatar's sovereignty.[56] The foreign minister of Qatar, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, said that Saudi statements regarding Qatar were contradictory: on the one hand, Saudi Arabia claimed Qatar was supporting Iran, on the other hand, it claimed Qatar was funding Sunni extremists fighting against Iran.[59]
The Tobruk-based government of Libya claimed to have cut diplomatic ties with Qatar despite having had no actual diplomatic relations with that country.[60][61][62] The semi-autonomous Somali regions of Puntland, Hirshabelle, and Galmudug each issued statements cutting ties with Qatar, in opposition to the neutral stance of the federal government of Somalia.[63] Other countries made statements condemning Qatar, including Gabon[64] and Eritrea.[65]
On 22 June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, and Bahrain issued Qatar a list of 13 demands through Kuwaiti mediation, requiring Qatar to agree within 10 days (2 July 2017). According to reports on 23 June, the demands included:[66][67][68][69]
According to a report by the Qatar-endowed Al Jazeera, "Qatari officials immediately dismissed the document as neither reasonable [nor] actionable." Iran denounced the blockade. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that some of the demands would be very hard to meet but encouraged further dialogue.[72]
On 3 July, Saudi Arabia accepted a Kuwaiti request for the deadline to be extended by 48 hours.[73]
On 5 July, foreign ministers from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain met in Cairo after receiving a response from Qatar to their list of demands. The meeting, intended to resolve the dispute, ended in a stalemate when Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir said that the political and economic boycott of Qatar would remain until it changed its policies.[74] Also on the same day, the Saudi-led bloc withdrew its insistence on compliance with the 13 specific demands of the previous month, instead asking Qatar to accept six broad principles, which included commitments to combat terrorism and extremism and to end acts of provocation and incitement.[75]
However, by 30 July 2017, the 13 demands had been reinstated.[76] In the meantime, a joint statement was made in Cairo in order to restart the negotiation process with Qatar, which included six principles:[77]
Global reactions[edit]
United States[edit]
On May 20, 2017 during the Riyadh Summit, Saudi and Emirati leaders held a private dinner with Senior Advisor to the President Jared Kushner and Chief Strategist Steve Bannon to inform them of their plan to blockade Qatar.[78][79]
Impact[edit]
Logistical implications[edit]
On 6 June 2017, Emirates Post of UAE halted postal services to Qatar.[154]
At the start of the blockade, nearly 80 percent of Qatar's food requirements came from Persian Gulf Arab neighbors, with only 1 percent being produced domestically. Imports from outside the Gulf states usually came by land from Saudi Arabia.[155] Immediately after the cutting of relations, local reports indicated residents swarmed grocery stores in hopes of stockpiling food. Many food delivery trucks were idled along the Saudi-Qatari border. On 8 June 2017, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said, "We're not worried about a food shortage, we're fine. We can live forever like this, we are well prepared."[90] Qatar had talks with both Turkey and Iran to secure the supply of food. On 11 June 2017, Iran sent four cargo planes with fruit and vegetables and promised to continue the supply.[156] Turkey pledged food and water supplies to go along with their troop deployment at their Turkish military base in Qatar.[90]
As part of the Qatari government's response to lost food imports, it provided support to domestic agricultural company Baladna, which built a new dairy farm with imported cattle that was planned to produce enough milk to fulfill domestic demand for dairy products by June 2018.[157]
Resolution[edit]
An article published by the Financial Times stated that, according to people briefed on the matter, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia moved towards ending the 2017 blockade against the State of Qatar after the victory of President-elect Joe Biden in 2020. An advisor to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, was quoted as calling the shift in the Kingdom's policy towards Qatar "a gift for Biden" signaling that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had shown willingness "to take steps" towards resolving differences with Qatar. The prince is said to have been intimidated by the incoming administration, as the former administration had reportedly supported the Riyadh government in times of crisis such as casualties in the Yemen war, detention of activists, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, etc. On the other hand, UAE's ambassador to the US, Yousef al-Otaiba, was quoted as stating that ending the dispute was not a priority, referring to the ongoing differences with the blockaded nation.[241]
On 4 January 2021, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia's neighbour and a fellow GCC member, along with the United States, jointly brokered a deal in which Saudi Arabia would end its blockade of Qatar and reopen their shared land border.[242][243]
On 5 January 2021, Qatar's Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, arrived in Al-'Ula, Saudi Arabia, for a GCC summit.[244] Later, the leaders signed the Al-'Ula statement. Before the signing, Bin Salman said that the support of Kuwait and the United States had resulted in "the Al-'Ula declaration agreement that will be signed at this blessed summit, in which the Gulf, Arab and Islamic solidarity and stability were emphasized."[5] In addition to the statement, a final communique was signed. Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud said Saudi Arabia and its allies agreed to restore full ties with Doha, including resumption of flights. Qatar did not fulfill any of the original 13 demands, analysts saying that the Gulf states agreed instead to a joint security declaration.[4][245]
The United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, welcomed the end of the crisis and the opening of the airspace, land, and sea borders between Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt, and Qatar. In a statement issued on 5 January 2021, he expressed hope that the countries concerned will continue to be positive, to strengthen their relations. He also recognized the contributions of the late Emir of Kuwait and late Sultan of Oman, who worked tirelessly towards resolving the Gulf rift.[246] One Middle East policy analyst believed that the secret pact among the Gulf leaders is likely to have been multi-level, which includes several bilateral agreements between individual states rather than a unitary document.[247]
As of July 2023, Bahrain,[248] Chad,[249] Egypt,[250] Maldives,[251] Mauritania,[252] Saudi Arabia,[253] Senegal,[254] and the UAE[255] had restored diplomatic ties with Qatar.