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29 March 2024

Qatar is scoring an own goal with its misguided foreign policy

Published

Political analysts are increasingly pointing out that Qatar’s misguided foreign policy, putting its short-term, political interests over and above the common policies followed by Gulf countries since the inception of the GCC union, is akin to scoring an own goal in the longer term as it is getting increasingly isolated.

Analysts maintain that while its neighbours had been patient and understanding until very recently, indulging their GCC neighbour with dialogue and discussion, they have clearly lost patience now and are adopting diplomatic means to let Qatar know about the aggravation caused by Qatar’s policies.

On March 5, three GCC member nations – the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain – announced in a joint statement that they were withdrawing their ambassadors from Doha to demonstrate their joint disappointment over Qatar’s continued following of its foreign policy that has started to create rifts between GCC members as it constitutes a violation of the GCC resolutions, agreements, interests and the security system that is based on common destiny and interests.

A Gulf diplomatic source told Emirates 24|7 that Qatar is spending upwards of $4 billion on its opportunistic foreign policies to the detriment of its own economy as well as to the harmony of the GCC region. The country wants to play a much larger role in regional politics but sources point out that Qatar’s policies are becoming increasingly contradictory to the GCC’s policies of non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs, jeopardising the stability of fellow GCC members.

Foreign policy analysts and followers have been noticing the negative impacts of Qatar’s ill-advised foreign policy for a while, and many have been voicing their concerns that such policies have now reached such a low point that they have begun to threaten the integrity of the GCC as a harmonious socio-economic unit.

Since November, the other GCC member nations have been waiting patiently for see if Qatar will abide by the agreement that was signed in Riyadh by Qatar’s Emir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in the presence of Kuwait’s Emir HH Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, to comply with a collective GCC agreement in which it promised not to interfere in other Gulf countries’ affairs, not to support groups threatening regional stability, and not to support hostile media.

Even after four months of the signing, Qatar has taken no measures to show its inclination to comply with the terms of that agreement.

Analysts maintain that the collective decision by UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain to withdraw their ambassadors from Qatar was a result of Qatar’s failure to abide by that agreement. It is believed that the decision was taken after long deliberations as all the GCC countries’ attempts for reconciliation fell on deaf ears It wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction to any one event or statement, and would have not come as a surprise that Qatar has claimed in their statements.

The Gulf diplomatic source said Qatar has managed to test the patience of its GCC neighbours who have traditionally demonstrated deep pools of tolerance and forgiveness.

In addition to failing to stick to its own promises, Qatar has been hosting radicals like Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who has been insulting and condemning the UAE and other GCC nations. In his sermon delivered at a mosque in the Qatari capital, Doha, and broadcast by state television, Qaradawi condemned the UAE as a country which was against Islamic rule.

“We have waited for our neighbour to express a clear rejection of this insolence and to offer sufficient clarifications and assurances for this misrepresentation and incitement against the UAE. But unfortunately, and despite the self-restraint and calm approach, we found no desire or response for such a thing from the brothers in Qatar,” a UAE official had then said.

Qaradawi, an Egyptian who has been granted Qatari citizenship, is also a wanted man in Cairo even as Doha has so far declined to comply with Egyptian requests for his extradition.

Qatar’s territory has also become a fertile ground for many hostile international organisations like the ‘Academy of Change’ headed by Hisham Mursi, Qardawi’s son-in-law. This group has been involved in Bahrain’s incident in a flagrant flouting of the tenets of non-interference in the internal affairs of the GCC nations.

In addition, Qatar has also given financial and logistical support to the Houthis in Yemen, backed the Muslim Brotherhood figures in Saudi Arabia and assisted terrorists who tried to overthrow the regime in the UAE.

By claiming that an agreement of principles prepared by Kuwait was replaced by a mechanism prepared by Saudi Arabia without consulting with other GCC members, Qatari media is trying to camouflage the issue.

During a meeting held in Kuwait on February 17 and attended by Sheikh Sabah, Sheikh Tamim and the GCC foreign ministers, an agreement was reached for the foreign ministry to draw up a mechanism to implement the Riyadh accord and this means that this agreement is binding to all member states. But Qatar is yet to abide by it.

All these facts show that GCC countries are keen on the need for Qatar to abide by all agreements. Analysts are hoping that creating crises has not become a pillar in Qatar’s foreign policies because the other GCC countries have the right to worry about their own security and stability and to face all challenges that may threaten their security. The security of GCC countries is a collective responsibility which should be undertaken by all.

The GCC countries are well within their rights to start taking appropriate steps to protect their security and stability. And the joint decision to withdraw their ambassadors was one such step. The world is hoping that Qatar will listen to the voice of logic and take serious steps to repair its ties with the other GCC countries. Such steps could be an incentive for rebuilding inter-GCC relations and help end rifts, achieve solidarity and confront all challenges in a spirit of collective responsibility and brotherhood.