Trump calls Gulf, Arab leaders to discuss ‘concerns’ over Qatar rift

US President Donald Trump spoke separately with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi on Sunday to discuss his 'concerns' amid an ongoing regional crisis.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab

03 July, 2017

Trump spoke separately with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi. [Getty]

US President Donald Trump spoke separately on Sunday with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi to discuss his "concerns about the ongoing dispute" between Qatar and its Arab neighbours amid an ongoing blockade of the country.

Trump spoke by phone with Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz, Abu Dhabi's crown prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani.

The president "underscored that unity in the region is critical to accomplishing the Riyadh Summit's goals of defeating terrorism and promoting regional stability," the White House said, according to Reuters.

He also reiterated the "importance of stopping terrorist financing and discrediting extremist ideology", stating that the "overriding objective of his initiative is the cessation of funding for terrorism," the White House added.

Trump spoke to the leaders as Saudi Arabia and its allies on Monday extended a deadline for Doha to accept a series of demands to lift a de facto blockade.

Their demands include Doha ending support for the Muslim Brotherhood, the closure of Al-Jazeera television, a downgrade of diplomatic ties with Iran and the shutdown of a Turkish military base in the emirate.

Qatar's foreign minister said last week that the recent ultimatum made by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and its allies on Doha was designed to be rejected.

"US officials and members of Congress realise that the crisis was premeditated and is not linked to counter-terrorism," he added.

Saudi Arabia and its allies announced on June 5 they were severing ties with their Gulf neighbour, sparking the worst diplomatic crisis to hit the region in decades.

They accused Doha of supporting extremism and of being too close to regional rival Iran, which Qatar has strongly denied.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has urged a diplomatic solution to the crisis, and Washington has been pushing for a clear list of grievances that are "reasonable and actionable".

Signalling Washington's mounting frustration at Riyadh's role in the crisis, state department spokeswoman Heather Nauert recently called on the parties to settle their differences.

She called into question whether Qatar's alleged support for terrorism is the true cause of the crisis or whether there is an underlying political dispute in what seems to be similar concerns voiced by Doha after the Gulf nations began announcing their intentions to cut diplomatic ties.

Agencies contributed to this report.