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Tag: Bahrain

  • Nigeria, Bahrain establish bilateral relations

    Nigeria, Bahrain establish bilateral relations

    Nigeria and Bahrain at the weekend engaged in bilateral discussions on diplomatic and direct foreign investment.

    Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, announced the diplomatic relations when he Manama, the Kingdom of Bahrain at the weekend

    A statement by his media aide, Alkasim Abdulkadir, said Tuggar engaged in bilateral discussions with his Bahraini counterpart, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani.

    The ministers signed a communiqué officially announcing the establishment of diplomatic relations between both countries.

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    The meeting, the statement said, “focused on strengthening diplomatic relations, facilitating foreign direct investment from Bahrain, enhancing trade and investment opportunities, and fostering cooperation in the oil and gas sectors, with particular emphasis on onshore projects and the development of the eighth train LNG”.

    It added: “The ministers also deliberated on the training of Nigerian diplomats and collaboration within multilateral fora.

  • UAE accuses Qatari fighter jets of intercepting civilian flight

    UAE accuses Qatari fighter jets of intercepting civilian flight

    The United Arab Emirates ( UAE ) on Monday accused Qatari fighter jets of intercepting an Emirati civilian aircraft during a routine flight to Bahrain, state news agency WAM reported.

    The UAE condemned the alleged incident and said it would take all necessary legal measures to ensure the security of civilian air traffic.

    On July 27, 2017, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates broke off relations with Qatar in the worst diplomatic crisis to hit Gulf Arab states in decades.

    The three Gulf countries and Egypt accused Qatar of supporting terrorism and destabilizing the region.

    Qatar, which shares its only land border with Saudi Arabia, has rejected the accusations, calling them “unjustified” and “baseless.” Yemen and the Maldives also cut ties with Qatar.

    Qatari citizens were given 14 days to leave Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE, and those countries also banned their own citizens from entering Qatar.

    Gulf allies have repeatedly criticized Qatar for alleged support of the Muslim Brotherhood, a nearly 100-year-old Islamist group considered a terrorist organization by Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

    The UAE accused Qatar of “funding and hosting” the group in its statement announcing the severance of ties.

    It also cited Qatar’s “ongoing policies that rattle the security and sovereignty of the region as well as its manipulation and evasion of its commitments and treaties” as the reason for its actions.

    Saudi Arabia accused Qatar in its statement of “adopting” groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood.
    Qatar denies that it funds or supports extremist groups.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Qatar hails Kuwaiti emir’s parliament speech on Gulf crisis

    Qatar hails Kuwaiti emir’s parliament speech on Gulf crisis

    Qatar highly appreciates Kuwaiti emir’s speech about the ongoing Gulf dispute at the opening session of the Kuwaiti parliament, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says.

    “Doha hails Kuwaiti emir’s call to preserve the rights of the future generations in the countries,’’ an official statement issued by the ministry said on Wednesday.

    In an address to parliament on Tuesday, Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Sabah said that Kuwait’s mediation efforts should be seen through the lens of the family of Gulf nations.

    “We are not a third party in this crisis. Rather, we are a party of one in this crisis.”

    The Saudi Arabia-led Arab quartet, which also includes the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, cut diplomatic ties with Qatar on June 5.

    It also imposed an air, sea and land embargo against the Gulf state, citing Doha’s support to terrorism and extremists.

    Qatar has strongly denied these charges and has been seeking diplomatic and economic support from Turkey and Iran, which is Saudi’s arch rival to break the blockade.

    Kuwait has been acting as a mediator since the Gulf crisis.

    NAN

  • Qatar emir says open to dialogue to resolve Gulf crisis

    Qatar emir says open to dialogue to resolve Gulf crisis

    Qatar is “open to dialogue” in resolving a dispute that has seen the Gulf state isolated from its Arab neighbours, its emir said during a visit to Indonesia on Wednesday.

    Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing it of financing terrorism and maintaining too close of ties to their arch-rival Iran.

    Doha denies the charges.

    Qatari Emir Tamim Thani said he discussed the issue with President Joko Widodo of Indonesia, which has the world’s largest population of Muslims and has close ties to the Arab world.

    “We conveyed…that Qatar is ready to conduct a dialogue to solve the problem as we already know that no one will win,” Thani told reporters after meeting with Widodo at the state palace in Bogor, outside the capital of Jakarta.

    “We are all brothers and suffering because of this crisis,” he added.

    President Widodo did not publicly address the dispute.

    The leader of the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas also visited Malaysia, another Muslim-majority nation, and Singapore.

    Saudi and other Arab nations have made a list of 13 wide-ranging demands of Qatar, including closing down the Al Jazeera television network and curbing ties with Iran.

    Kuwait and top United States officials have attempted to mediate between the parties, but there is little sign that the crisis will be resolved soon.

    NAN

  • UAE minister denies hacking of Qatari websites

    UAE minister denies hacking of Qatari websites

    The United Arab Emirates was not responsible for an alleged hack of Qatari websites which helped spark a month-long diplomatic rift with Doha, the UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs said on Monday.

    Speaking at a forum in London, Anwar Gargash said the UAE would not escalate its boycott by asking companies to choose between doing business with it or with Qatar.

    Vodafone Qatar, an affiliate of Vodafone Group had said that access to its network was being affected by technical issues.

    “The company is working to resolve the issue,’’ Vodafone Qatar said on its official Twitter account.

    Several Vodafone customers told Reuters that they were unable to make or receive phone calls.

    A spokesman for Vodafone Qatar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    State-controlled Ooredoo also serves Qatar’s mobile communications market.

    Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing it of supporting terrorism, a claim which Qatar denies.

  • Qatar not worried about suspension from GCC – Foreign minister

    Qatar not worried about suspension from GCC – Foreign minister

    Qatar is not worried that its membership in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will be suspended as its rival neighbours threaten to escalate their sanctions against Doha.

    “No, they cannot take such a decision because it should be by consensus,” Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdulrahman said during a meeting at the Chatham House think tank in London.

    He was referring to the six-member political and economic alliance in the Gulf, which includes Kuwait and Oman, who have taken a neutral stance since the crisis began a month ago.

    Three members of the GCC, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, along with Egypt cut diplomatic and transportation links with Qatar in June.

    Since then, Kuwait has been mediating the crisis.

    The media reports that Qatar faces further isolation and possible expulsion from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) if its response to a list of demands made nearly two weeks ago is not satisfactory.

    Saudi Arabia, the United Arab emirates, Egypt and Bahrain foreign ministers are due to meet in Cairo to discuss Qatar’s reply to 13 demands they sent to Qatar in return for the lifting of sanctions imposed in June.

    The dispute revolves around allegations that Qatar supports Islamist militants, including the Muslim Brotherhood, which has been designated a terrorist organisation by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt.

    Qatar denies it supports terrorism and says Arab countries want to control its foreign policy.

    Abdulrahman had said at a joint news conference with his German counterpart on Tuesday that its response was “given in goodwill and good initiative for a constructive solution.

    However, he insisted that Doha would not compromise on its sovereignty.

    Gulf officials have said the demands are not negotiable, signaling more sanctions are possible, including “parting ways” with Doha a suggestion it may be ejected from the GCC, a regional economic and security cooperation body founded in 1981.

    “Qatar is walking alone in its dreams and illusions, far away from its Gulf Arab brothers, after it sold every brother and friend and bought the treacherous and the one far away at the highest price.

    “A Gulf national may be obliged to prepare psychologically for his Gulf to be without Qatar,” the editor of the Abu Dhabi government linked al-Ittihad newspaper wrote in an editorial said.

    Some newspapers said that remarks by Abdulrahman in which he stressed his country would not compromise on its sovereignty suggests that Doha would not change its policies.

  • Saudi King cancels participation in G20 summit due to Gulf crisis

    Saudi King cancels participation in G20 summit due to Gulf crisis

    Saudi Arabia’s King Salman Al-Saud will not attend the G20 summit due to the Gulf crisis, Saudi diplomatic sources said on Monday.

    Instead of the king, the Minister of Finance Mohammed al-Jadaan will attend the summit, scheduled to take place in the northern German port city of Hamburg on Friday and Saturday.

    The summit brings together leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump, Turkish President Recep Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

    In June, Saudi Arabia led its neighbours Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, in cutting ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism, a charge that Doha denies.

    NAN reports that on June 24, the four Arab states handed the country a list of 13 demands, including some likely to infuriate Doha and exacerbate the region’s worst crisis in decades.

    Some of the key demands include shut down the Al Jazeera media network and its affiliates, halt the development of a Turkish military base in the country and reduce diplomatic ties with Iran.

    Others are cut ties to extremist organisations, stop interfering in the four countries’ affairs, stop the practice of giving Qatari nationality to citizens of the four countries.

    The four Arab countries on Monday agreed to give Qatar 48 more hours, in a deadline extension proposed by Kuwait, for the Gulf emirate to comply with a list of demands.

    Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt agreed to extend the deadline after Kuwait’s government urged them to do so late Sunday, the Kuwait News Agency reported.

    Earlier, as the original deadline expired, Saudi-owned television Al Arabiya reported that Qatar could be hit by further sanctions.

    Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt said they were “studying” a list of potential political and economic sanctions against Qatar after it rejected the list of demands.

  • Qatar: Arab countries extend deadline by 48 hours

    Qatar: Arab countries extend deadline by 48 hours

    Four Arab countries have agreed to give Qatar 48 more hours, in a deadline extension proposed by Kuwait, for the Gulf emirate to comply with a list of demands, local media reported early Monday.

    Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt agreed to extend the deadline after Kuwait’s government urged them to do so late Sunday, the Kuwait News Agency reported.

    Earlier, as the original deadline expired, Saudi-owned television Al Arabiya reported that Qatar could be hit by further sanctions from the countries that have cut ties with the Gulf emirate over its alleged support for terrorism.

    Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt were “studying” a list of potential political and economic sanctions against Qatar after it rejected the list of demands, Al Arabiya said.

    The Dubai-based broadcaster said that one possible punishment would be suspending Qatar from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a U.S.-allied bloc.

    The GCC comprises Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

    Potential trade penalties against Qatar could be extended to include countries and companies dealing with the energy-rich emirate, Al Arabiya added without elaborating.

    The foreign ministers of Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia will meet in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss “future steps” in dealing with Qatar, a spokesman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said late Sunday.

    On Friday, Qatar disclosed a list of 13 demands issued by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt.

    The demands were conveyed by Kuwait which is acting as a mediator in an attempt to defuse the ongoing dispute.

    The demands include downgrading ties with Iran, a regional rival of Saudi Arabia; stopping support for Islamist groups, and shutting down the Doha-based broadcaster Al Jazeera and its channels.

    Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Thani is due to deliver his country’s official reply on the demands to Kuwait’s Emir Sabah Al Ahmed on Monday, according to Al Arabiya.

    There was no immediate confirmation from either Qatar or Kuwait.

    Mohammed had earlier said the demands violated his country’s sovereignty but called for dialogue.

    Meanwhile, President Donald Trump, who initially claimed credit for sparking the rift between the Gulf nations, spoke separately with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman Al-Saud, Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim Hamad and Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed Al-Nahyan.

    The president “underscored that unity in the region is critical … to defeating terrorism and promoting regional stability,” the White House said in a statement.

    “President Trump, nevertheless, believes that the overriding objective of his initiative is the cessation of funding for terrorism,” it continued.

    In June, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt severed diplomatic ties and transportation links with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism, a charge that Doha denies.

    Later, the four countries placed on terrorism lists 59 figures and 12 groups with alleged links to Qatar.

    Doha has called the boycott a “siege” and “collective punishment.”

    In 2014, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain temporarily withdrew their ambassadors from Qatar, accusing it of breaching a regional security pact.

    That dispute was resolved through Kuwait’s mediation.

  • Demand for Qatar to close down al-Jazeera ‘unacceptable’ – UN

    Demand for Qatar to close down al-Jazeera ‘unacceptable’ – UN

    The UN says the demand by Saudi Arabia and three other Arab nations for Qatar to close down its al-Jazeera TV channel is an “unacceptable attack” on the right to freedoms of expression and opinion.

    Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt imposed a boycott on Qatar on June 5, accusing it of backing militants, then issued an ultimatum, including demands it shut down a Turkish military base in Doha, shutting Al Jazeera and curbing ties with Iran.

    UN High Commissioner is “extremely concerned by the demand that Qatar close down the Al Jazeera network, as well as other affiliated media outlets”, his spokesman Rupert Colville told a news briefing.

    Al Jazeera

    “Whether or not you watch it, like it, or agree with its editorial standpoints, Al Jazeera’s Arabic and English channels are legitimate, and have many millions of viewers.

    “The demand that they be summarily closed down is, in our view, an unacceptable attack on the right to freedom of expression and opinion,” Colville said.

    NAN reports that on June 24, the four Arab states handed the country a list of 13 demands, including some likely to infuriate Doha and exacerbate the region’s worst crisis in decades.

    Some of the key demands include shut down the Al Jazeera media network and its affiliates, halt the development of a Turkish military base in the country and reduce diplomatic ties with Iran.

    Others are cut ties to extremist organisations, stop interfering in the four countries’ affairs, stop the practice of giving Qatari nationality to citizens of the four countries.

  • Qatar demands difficult to meet – U.S.

    Qatar demands difficult to meet – U.S.

    The U.S. says some of the demands by four Arab countries as conditions to lift the sanctions over Qatar would be difficult for Doha to meet.

    The U.S. Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, in a statement on Sunday recommended that the countries sit together and find an amicable compromise to the crisis.

    Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirate had accused Qatar of backing terrorism, a charge it denied.

    Tillerson said: “Qatar has begun its careful review and consideration of a series of requests presented by Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and UAE.

    “While some of the elements will be very difficult for Qatar to meet, there are significant areas which provide a basis for on-going dialogue leading to resolution.”

    According to him, a productive next step would be for each of the countries to sit together and continue this conversation.

    “We believe our allies and partners are stronger when they are working together towards one goal which we all agree is stopping terrorism and countering extremism.

    “Each country involved has something to contribute to that effort. A lowering of rhetoric would also help ease the tension.

    “The United States will continue to stay in close contact with all parties and will continue to support the mediation efforts of the Emir of Kuwait,” Tillerson said.

    On Saturday, Qatar’s foreign minister rejected the list of 13 conditions imposed by the four countries.

    The conditions have put Qatar under unprecedented diplomatic and economic sanctions for more than two weeks.

    The four countries also want Qatar to reduce its ties with Iran and close a Turkish military base, setting a deadline on Friday of 10 days.