Qatar’s ruler arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, following an announcement that the kingdom would open its airspace and land border with its tiny Gulf neighbor. It was another diplomatic achievement for White House adviser Jared Kushner and the first major step toward ending a years-long diplomatic crisis that deeply divided U.S. defense partners, frayed societal ties and tore apart a traditionally clubby alliance of Arab states. The arrival of Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to the kingdom’s ancient desert city of Al-Ula was broadcast live on Saudi TV. He was seen descending from his plane and being greeted with a hug by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Kuwait and the United States had been trying unsuccessfully to bring an end to the crisis that erupted more than three years ago but it wasn’t until late Monday — on the eve of a summit of Gulf Arab leaders and just ahead of President-elect Joe Biden’s swearing in — that a breakthrough was announced. The timing was auspicious: Saudi Arabia may be seeking to both grant the Trump administration a final diplomatic win and remove stumbling blocs to building warm ties with the Biden administration, which is expected to take a firmer stance toward the kingdom. #WATCH: The Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani arrived at #Alula where he was greeted with an embrace by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman ahead of the #GCCSummit41, just hours after the two countries agreed to reopen their boarders https://t.co/ArynqCvIW4 pic.twitter.com/3eVnsGeqtL — Arab News (@arabnews) January 5, 2021 Basically, #SaudiArabia and other #Gulf leaders agreed that #Qatar"s young emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad should not be held responsible for a list of grievances that stretches back 20 years. Not to forget Jared Kushner's magic touch in diplomacy. https://t.co/aeuBgHvyxO — Ahmed Quraishi (@_AhmedQuraishi1) January 4, 2021 The Gulf crisis ends: * Saudi Arabia and Qatar will open their borders and air spaces * The UAE, Bahrain and Egypt will lift the embargo on Qatar. * Qatar will abandon all the lawsuits * Kushner will attend the signing of the Gulf deal — Amichai Stein (@AmichaiStein1) January 4, 2021 Credit goes to U.S. and its pro-active diplomacy for resolving the Gulf crisis. Kushner did his magic once again. It's good to see Saudi bloc and Qatar finally agreeing to end this dispute, which harmed U.S. + Gulf interests and made Iranian regime very happy. — FJ (@Natsecjeff) January 5, 2021 Qatar’s only land border has been mostly closed since June mid-2017, when Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain launched a blockade against the small, but influential Persian Gulf country, accusing it of supporting Islamist extremist groups and of having warm ties with Iran. The Saudi border, which Qatar relied on for the import of dairy products, construction materials and other goods, opened briefly during the past three years to allow Qataris into Saudi Arabia to perform the Islamic hajj pilgrimage. It was unclear what concessions Qatar had made regarding a shift in its policies, but ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, is to take part in a ceremony Tuesday at the summit of Gulf Arab leaders to sign a statement that promises to “usher in a bright page of brotherly relations,” according to Kuwait’s foreign minister. Qatar […]
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