Qatar Row: Diplomatic Efforts in Full Swing
Image Caption: Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber
JEDDAH — Diplomatic efforts are in full swing to resolve the Qatar issue, with many Gulf leaders receiving letters from Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber. The emir embarked on a mediation initiative a few weeks ago.
Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, on Monday received a letter addressed to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman from the emir of Kuwait. Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad handed the letter to the Crown Prince during a meeting at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah. He also met with Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir.
Similar letters from the emir were handed to President Abdel-Fattah El-Sissi of Egypt, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed, president of UAE, and Sultan Qaboos Bin Saeed of Oman.
The Kuwaiti delegate met on Monday with President El-Sissi to discuss the Qatari crisis and the role of Kuwait’s mediation. El-Sissi and Sheikh Sabah reviewed the latest developments on the Qatari crisis in the light of the efforts exerted by Kuwait in its bid to protect the Arab unity.
Sheikh Sabah met with UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid in Dubai on Tuesday.
During the meeting, Sheikh Sabah handed over to Sheikh Mohammed a letter from Kuwait emir to the UAE president.
In Muscat, Sheikh Sabah met on Tuesday with Sayyid Asaad Bin Tarek Al-Saeed, deputy prime minister and special representative of Sultan Qaboos, and handed him the letter from the emir to Sultan Qaboos.
They also discussed ways to further enhance bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries.
Meanwhile, two American envoys, retired general Anthony Zinni and deputy assistant secretary of state for Arabian Gulf affairs Timothy Lenderking, arrived in Kuwait. The two will visit Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt before heading to Qatar.
Algerian Foreign Minister Abdul Qadir Misahil voiced Algeria’s support to Kuwait’s efforts to find a solution to the Qatari crisis and said he was optimistic about the efforts of the Kuwaiti mediation.
In a related development, Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman and French President Emmanuel Macaron agreed on the need to exert more efforts to dry up sources of terrorism.
During a telephone conversation, the two leaders stressed the keenness of both countries on the security and stability of the region.
They discussed ways to fighting terrorism and extremism besides reviewing bilateral relations between the two countries in various fields.
(Source: SaudiGazette.com.sa)