Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani made a visit to Paris, seeking support for an effort to negotiate a resolution to the ongoing diplomatic split between his nation and the other Gulf Arab states, insisting the sanctions imposed on Qatar are “unfair” and “illegal.”
Thani insisted that Qatar was eager to take part in “dialogue based on clear foundations” over the split, and would discuss anything related to Gulf security. He did, however, caution that Qatar’s would not abandon its independent foreign policy just because the other nations in the GCC don’t like some of their decisions.
To that end, Thani insisted he doesn’t believe the split was about either Qatar’s limited diplomatic ties with Iran, nor the al-Jazeera media outlet taking positions the Saudis don’t like, and that the Qatari government still has “no clue about the real reason.”
Kuwait and Oman are both offering to help mediate the dispute, and Britain is said to be planning to host talks aimed at a resolution. British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson warned against any further escalation during the mediation efforts, but also played up the Saudi narrative, insisting that Qatar “urgently need to do more to address support for extremist groups.”