Doha:
Qatar has referred to as for Gulf Arab nations to hold talks with Iran, the foreign minister stated in an interview aired Tuesday, immediately after Doha reconciled with its neighbours following a rift.
Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, who has previously referred to as for dialogue with Iran, told Bloomberg Television he was “hopeful that this would happen and we still believe this should happen”.
“This is also a desire that’s shared by other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries,” he stated.
It comes weeks immediately after GCC hawks Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE re-established ties with Qatar immediately after breaking them off in June 2017 partly more than allegations that Qatar was as well close to Iran. Doha denied the accusations.
Qatar and Iran share 1 of the world’s biggest gas fields and Doha maintains cordial relations with Tehran.
Doha is a close ally of Washington and has previously mediated involving the US and Iran suggesting that Sheikh Mohammed’s intervention could be timed as a signal to the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden. Biden is due to take workplace on Wednesday.
The present occupant of the White House, President Donald Trump, has pursued a policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran and pulled the United States out of a multilateral nuclear deal with it in 2018.
Tehran’s arch-rival Riyadh, the dominant Gulf Arab energy, has not publicly indicated any willingness to engage with Iran.
Instead Saudi Arabia insisted that this month’s rapprochement with Qatar meant the Gulf household would be far better capable to combat “the threats posed by the Iranian regime’s nuclear and ballistic missile programme”.
“Qatar will facilitate negotiations, if asked by stakeholders, and will support whoever is chosen to do so,” added Sheikh Mohammed.
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