Gulf States Might Return Envoys To Doha Soon – Official

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE might return their ambassadors to Doha soon, potentially ending a rare diplomatic fallout between the members of the regional bloc, according to a report in a Qatar-based daily.

Oman’s foreign minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah was quoted as saying in Al Sharq newspaper that a recent dialogue between the Qatar’s emir and Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah has “brought the GCC viewpoints closer”.

He added that such discussions will also pave the way for the return of envoys to Qatar while the next meeting of GCC foreign ministers would address the issue in depth.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain recalled their ambassadors from Doha in March after they accused Qatar of interfering in the internal affairs of other Gulf states.

The internal rift was further exacerbated by what analysts say is Qatar’s support for Muslim Brotherhood, which the three Gulf states consider a terrorist organisation.

Qatar, however, has denied such allegations and has retained its ambassadors in these countries.

“GCC countries are determined to contain and treat their internal differences and resume unity for a better than ever joint co-operation besides the protection of 30 years of past joint achievements,” said Abdullah.

Ever since the fallout, the Gulf Arab states have been working on mending their relations which included finding common ground on ways to implement a security agreement they reached last year.

A meeting in April between the Gulf countries saw them agreeing on steps to heal the rift but no further ground was gained in sending back the envoys to Qatar.

Most recently, Bahrain lashed out at Qatar for luring its citizens to switch their nationality.

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry’s Undersecretary for Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs, Sheikh Rashid bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, said that Qatar had “targeted specific families and singled out a particular category of people” with no consideration to Bahraini laws.

“The naturalisation of Bahrainis would affect Bahrain’s national security and vital interests negatively,” the Bahrain News Agency said quoting the official.