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Rabat – The Qatar boycott by three of its neighboring Gulf states and Egypt is close to its end, according to the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia. Diplomats of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, who are involved in the negotiations, announced that the Gulf crisis is nearing a resolution.
Kuwait, which mediates the negotiations, stated that talks were “fruitful” while Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan told the press that the parties had achieved “significant progress.” Bahrain, Egypt, and the UAE have yet to publish any official statement, yet the positive sounds emanating from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait signal change on the horizon.
“We hope that this progress can lead to a final agreement which looks in reach,” Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal told Italian publication Mediterranean Dialogues today. ”I can say that I am somewhat optimistic that we are close to finalising an agreement between all the nations in the dispute to come to a resolution that we think will be satisfactory to all,” Prince Faisal added.
Deputy Prime Minister of Qatar Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani expressed gratitude for Kuwait’s role as a mediator. He stated that “the interest and security of the people of the Gulf and the region remain our top priority.”
Read also: Qatar Reiterates Support for Morocco’s Action to Secure Guerguerat
“Fruitful discussions have taken place in the past period, where all parties affirmed their keenness on Gulf and Arab solidarity and stability,” Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Ahmed Nasser Al Mohammad Al Sabah expressed in a statement. He signalled that all parties involved appeared “keen” on “reaching a final agreement that achieves the aspired permanent solidarity between their countries.”
The likely development would become Kuwait’s first diplomatic accomplishment since the passing of its former ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who the international community knew for his diplomatic efforts. Resolving the crisis could also become a diplomatic victory for the United States, who Sheikh Mohammed thanked in his statement.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that “we are very hopeful that the dispute between the Saudis and the Qataris can be resolved,” adding that the US is “going to keep working to facilitate conversations and dialogues.”
Sheikh Mohammed described the need to end the years-long boycott in the Gulf a bit more bluntly: “This needless crisis needs to come to an end.” If the crisis is indeed reaching its conclusion, the involved states will likely announce it when they meet again before the end of the year.
