Veteran Egypt diplomat defies Sisi and hails Qatar as 'global power'

A veteran Egyptian diplomat has hailed Qatar's economic position despite an ongoing blockade against the Gulf state.

Amr Moussa made the remarks on Monday during a lengthy interview with local media about his recently released memoirs.

"Qatari initiative has been welcomed. Qatari initative is to buy, do and be a supporting part of the economy - with a lot of money. They have played it well, they are very clever," Moussa said.

"Go to Paris and look where their embassy is. Go to New York and look where their properties are. They are present in Western societies.

"When the Qatari emir asked to meet with prominent Western leaders and others asked the priority would be given to them because there were clear benefits. They wouldn't just say we are going to buy, they would say we want to do this and that," Moussa said.

He added that Doha has used broadcaster Al Jazeera to exert "soft power" in the region, angering its Gulf neighbours and Egypt.

Moussa's comments come amid a Saudi-led diplomatic blockade of the gas-rich emirate.

On 5 June, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic and economic ties with Qatar, accusing it of links to extremist groups and being too close to Iran, Riyadh's arch-rival.

Doha denies the allegations and has accused the bloc of aiming to incite regime change.

Moussa, a former minister of foreign affairs and former secretary-general of the Arab League, released the first part of his memoirs in September.

The book details his ten years as Egypt's top diplomat between 1991 and 2001.

The veteran diplomat unsuccessfully ran in a 2012 presidential election won by the Islamist Mohamed Morsi.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi led the military's 2013 overthrow of Morsi, whose one-year in office proved divisive.

During the interview, Moussa threw his weight behind Sisi, who is expected to announce he will run in next year’s elections.