The four Arab nations that have cut ties with Qatar on Sunday said they were ready for talks to tackle the dispute if Doha showed willingness to deal with their demands.
The foreign ministers of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) met in the Bahraini capital, Manama, to discuss the crisis that has raised tensions across the region.
“The four countries are ready for dialogue with Qatar with the condition that it announces its sincere willingness to stop funding terrorism and extremism and its commitment to not interfere in other countries’ foreign affairs and respond to the 13 demands,” Bahraini Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa told a joint news conference after the meeting.
Photo: Reuters
They announced no new economic sanctions on the Gulf state.
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir said Qatar was not serious in tackling the nations’ demands.
“We are ready to talk with Qatar on the implementation of the demands, on the implementation of the principles, if Qatar is serious, but it has been clear that it is not,” he said.
The four countries have also listed “six principles” they want Qatar to adopt.
Qatari Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani dismissed the statement and said sanctions were violating international laws.
“There isn’t a clear vision [from Manama’s meeting], there is only a stubborn policy from the blockading countries and refusal to admit that these are illegal actions,” Sheikh Mohammed told al-Jazeera’s television channel.
Earlier on Sunday, al-Hayat newspaper said, citing unidentified Gulf sources, that the four nations “are expected to impose sanctions that will gradually affect the Qatari economy.”
Saudi Arabia has closed its land border with Qatar, while all four nations have cut air and sea links with Doha, demanding the gas-exporting nation take several measures to show it was changing its policies.
Turkey and Iran have stepped in to provide fresh produce, poultry and dairy products to Qatar instead of Saudi Arabia and the UAE, with Oman providing alternative ports to those in the UAE.
The four Arab countries added 18 groups and individuals they say are linked to Qatar to their “terrorist” lists last week.
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