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The Middle East has been experiencing one of its worst phases of financial and consequential crises for over 20 months. In June 2017, The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bahrain severed diplomatic relations with Qatar. Some of the nations –particularly Saudi Arabia, have ordered the citizens of Qatar to leave their host country and restricted their own citizens to travel to or live in Qatar. In addition to Saudi Arabia, countries like Bahrain, the UAE, and Egypt have closed the aerospace to Qatari Aircrafts. As such, this condition has forced a wide number of flights to make use of the airspace in Iran.The EU (European Union), Britain, and the United States of America have tried mediating the situations in the given dispute. However, there have been no positive outcomes. Now that the EU, embroiled in Brexit, is meeting Arab leaders in Egypt, there may be a further push to end the embargo of Qatar.
The officials in Saudi Arabia and Qatar estimate that the stand-off could last for several years. In the current scenario, the United States of America is also seemingly agreeing on the fact that all possible mediation efforts in Qatar have failed. Mike Pompeo –the Secretary of State for the United States, during a Gulf tour in 2019 January said, “The stand-off is in everybody’s mind. Moreover, there has been no clarity that the rift that has been created is anywhere closer to being resolved in the modern era.”
In the end, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the EU (European Union) have a great incentive to push to an end to the embargo. This is because Qatar serves as a major military partner which is the host to the largest United States military base in the entire Middle East. However, beyond the aspects of foreign and military policy concerns, there is the requirement for a compelling business reason, that as Brexit brings rising tariffs, as does the US-China ‘trade war’, the West does not need more hinderance to global growth and free trade.
Moreover, the embargo has the exact opposite effect as intended by the blockading countries. For instance, the closure of the border of Qatar with Saudi Arabia along with some of the major shipping routes through the re-export hub located at Jebel Ali Airport in Dubai had almost an opposite effect than what was intended. Qatar is now known to rely significantly on import from Iran. Additionally, instead of Qatar being portrayed as a pariah, as wished for by Saudi Arabia and UAE, it is they, with the bombings in Yemen leading to deaths of children, and the Khashoggi murder plus arrest then release of British citizens in UAE, that have been seen as aggressors.
Get more information on the stand-off & its mediation at https://www.chathamhouse.org/publications/twt/bringing-qatar-back-cold or email at a.patel@praefinium.com
Contact Info:
Name: Alpesh Patel
Email: Send Email
Organization: Praefinium Partners
Address: 800 W EI Camino Real #180, Mountain View, CA 94040, US
Website: https://www.chathamhouse.org
Release ID: 484833