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Qatar Row: FM Says Saudi-Led Bloc of States Undermining Mediation Efforts

Qatar Row: FM Says Saudi-Led Bloc of States Undermining Mediation Efforts
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Qatar's foreign minister said the "negative behavior" of the Saudi-led bloc of blockaders is undermining the mediation efforts aimed at settling the unprecedented diplomatic crisis engulfing the country.

Qatar Row: FM Says Saudi-Led Bloc of States Undermining Mediation Efforts

In an interview with Qatari broadcaster Al-Jazeera late Tuesday, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, now on a US visit, reiterated that Doha was open to dialog on issues of concern, but that its international affairs would not be up for negotiations.

"We see there is a negative behavior aimed at influencing the mediation, either through statements or through [media] leaks which they launch at critical moments," the Qatari minister added.

He said his visit to Washington is part of the US-Kuwait efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the row between Doha and the Saudi-led bloc boycotting his country - Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates [UAE].

Sheikh Mohammed noted that his trip is also "aimed at informing politicians, senators and MPs in the United States about the negative impacts of this crisis on the region."

Since the outbreak of the crisis, he said, the US has demanded "the rapid lifting of the unjust siege against Qatar ... but the contradictory statements of" the blockaders have "prevented" this from happening.

Last month, the Saudi-led quartet imposed a trade and diplomatic embargo on Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorism.

They presented Qatar with a list of 13 wide-ranging demands and gave it an ultimatum to comply with them or face unspecified consequences.

The demands included shutting down the broadcaster Al-Jazeera, removing Turkish troops from Qatar's soil, scaling back cooperation with Iran and ending ties with Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood movement.

Doha, however, denounced the demands as unreasonable, refused to meet them, and said that they were meant to force the country to surrender its sovereignty.

The Qatari minister's comments came after the quartet of Arab countries unveiled a new terrorist blacklist of 18 entities and individuals, six of them from Yemen, over having suspected "direct or indirect" ties with Qatari authorities.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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