Manama: The positive and clear stance expressed by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo towards Riyadh should prompt Qataris to ponder the wisdom of their vicious media attacks on Saudi Arabia, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar Gargash has said.
In an Op/Ed in the Wall Street Journal titled “The US-Saudi partnership is vital”, Pompeo said Saudi Arabia is a powerful force for stability in the Middle East.
Gargash, in a series of tweets, said the opinion article by Pompeo, “in which he expresses Washington’s strategic support for Saudi Arabia, is very important”.
“Pompeo criticises the double standards and political targeting of Riyadh and stresses the importance of Saudi Arabia in regional issues, the US position is clear and positive,” he tweeted to his 884,000 followers.
The UAE official added that while the US position is clear in its support for the stability of Saudi Arabia and its refusal to target it, the Arab and Gulf position is clearer.
“Saudi Arabia is the basis for any ... Arab and Gulf structure. Its security, success and prosperity are guarantees for all of us in a region that is still suffering from crises,” he said.
“This could be a great opportunity for the Qataris to ask their leadership about the wisdom of using their media to attack Saudi Arabia viciously, about the Qatari interests in such attacks and about the loss of an opportunity for Doha to ease its crisis. It is the lack of wisdom and the loss of direction.”
Gargash was referring to the Qatar crisis that broke out in June 2017 after Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt severed their diplomatic, commercial and travel ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting extremists and funding terrorism.
The four countries issued a list of demands and principles and asked Qatar to comply with them.
However, Doha rejected the accusations and turned down the demands, resulting in a stalemate. Mediation efforts have failed to achieve a breakthrough.
