Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies said early Wednesday they had received Qatar’s response to their list of demands for restoring relations, which Doha has described as “unrealistic”. “Minister Adel al-Jubeir received from the Kuwaiti state minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Sabah the official Qatari response regarding the demands of the boycotting countries,” the Saudi foreign … Read more
Qatar’s foreign minister said Tuesday that demands put to Doha by Saudi Arabia and its allies in the Gulf diplomatic crisis were impossible to meet. “The list is unrealistic and is not actionable,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani told reporters in Doha. “It’s not about terrorism, it’s talking about shutting down the freedom of speech,” … Read more
Under-pressure Qatar vowed a major boost to gas production Tuesday as a deadline approached for Doha to meet the demands of Arab countries engaged in a blockade against it. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt — who accuse Qatar of supporting extremism — gave Doha an extra 48 hours to address their … Read more
Energy-rich Qatar said on Tuesday it plans to increase natural gas production by 30 percent over the next several years, as it faces pressure from its neighbours in a diplomatic crisis. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the head of Qatar Petroleum, told a press conference that the emirate intends to raise production to 100 million tonnes of … Read more
Former under-20 boss Shin Tae-Yong was given the task of rescuing South Korea’s teetering World Cup qualifying campaign when he was named as the country’s new national team boss on Tuesday. Shin replaces Uli Stielike, 62, South Korea’s longest-serving coach, who was axed last month after a shock defeat to Qatar left them in danger … Read more
Rising oil prices and investor appetite for financial stocks helped boost most major US and European equities on Monday while the dollar rebounded on exchange markets ahead of the July 4 holiday in the United States. On a shortened trading day, Wall Street finished mixed, with the blue-chip Dow and the S&P both a hair’s … Read more
The UN Security Council has told Qatar to sort out its differences with its Gulf neighbors, China’s ambassador said Monday, indicating the top UN body would not get involved in the dispute. Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani met with Security Council members on Friday to discuss the rupture in ties with Saudi … Read more
Nearly a month since Qatar was isolated by its Gulf neighbours, residents of the emirate have learned to adapt to the daily realities of living with the embargo. They buy vegetables and milk that come from Iran and Turkey, complain about price increases for staples while those travelling abroad face longer-than-usual flights as most neighbouring … Read more
Qatar on Monday handed its official response to a list of demands by Saudi Arabia and its allies to the emir of Kuwait, a Gulf official told AFP. The response was delivered by Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani who made a short visit to Kuwait, which is acting as a mediator to … Read more
Saudi Arabia and three other Arab states have extended the deadline for Qatar to accept a list of demands or face further sanctions by 48 hours. The initial deadline for Qatar to agree to the group’s 13 demands, including the shutting down of the Al Jazeera news network, expired on Sunday. The Gulf state, which … Read more
Qatar was to respond on Monday after Saudi Arabia and its allies gave a defiant Doha another 48 hours to accept a series of demands or face further sanctions. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt announced in the early hours of Monday they were pushing back a deadline for Qatar to agree … Read more
Saudi Arabia and its allies said early Monday they had decided to extend by 48 hours the deadline for Qatar to accept their list of demands to lift a de facto blockade. With the deadline expiring at midnight Sunday, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt agreed to give Doha an extension to … Read more
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel, who on Monday starts a tour of several Arab states, called for a “serious dialogue” to end the crisis following the de facto blockade of Qatar by its neighbours. “Since many weeks, the brotherly countries and neighbours of the Arabian peninsula have been locked in a conflict that has fuelled … Read more
A deadline was approaching Sunday for Qatar to accept 13 demands by several Arab states in return for lifting a de facto blockade. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain, cut ties with Qatar on June 5 and issued their demands on June 22. The deadline has not been officially confirmed. Here are … Read more
A deadline was approaching Sunday for Qatar to accept a series of demands made by several Arab states to lift a de facto blockade, with no indications Doha was ready to comply. Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said Saturday that the 13 demands from Saudi Arabia and several of its allies were … Read more
President Donald Trump may accuse Qatar of sponsoring terrorism, but that did not stop the wealthy emirate this week from lighting up the Empire State building in the national colors of his Middle Eastern nation. Trump — who himself once tried to acquire the Manhattan skyscraper — has sided with Saudi Arabia in its increasingly … Read more
Qatar said Saturday a series of demands made by several Arab states to lift a crippling blockade were designed to be spurned and clearly aimed at infringing its sovereignty. “This list of demands is made to be rejected,” Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said, referring to 13 demands placed on Doha by … Read more
Turkey on Friday said the rights of Qatar must be respected as it hosted the defence minister of Ankara’s main Gulf ally which has been left isolated by Saudi-led sanctions. Khaled bin Mohammed al-Attiyah met with Turkish Defence Minister Fikri Isik at the defence ministry in Ankara, the state-run news agency Anadolu said on Thursday. … Read more
US President Donald Trump, shown in this photo from Tuesday, told Erdogan that all sides in the Qatar dispute should step up “efforts to fight terrorism and extremism in all its forms” US President Donald Trump spoke with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday regarding the diplomatic isolation of Qatar by its Gulf … Read more
The UN voiced outrage Friday at the demand from Gulf countries that Qatar-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera shut down, describing it as “an unacceptable attack on the right to freedom of expression and opinion.” The closure of the broadcaster is one of 13 wide-ranging demands placed on Doha by Saudi Arabia and its allies as the price … Read more