Qatar–Saudi Arabia diplomatic conflict
Diplomatic issue between Qatar and Saudi Arabia / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Qatar–Saudi Arabia diplomatic conflict refers to the ongoing struggle for regional influence between Qatar and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), both of which are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). It is sometimes called the New Arab Cold War.[10][11][12] Bilateral relations have been especially strained since the beginning of the Arab Spring,[13] that left a power vacuum both states sought to fill, with Qatar being supportive of the revolutionary wave and Saudi Arabia opposing it. Both states are allies of the United States, and have avoided direct conflict with one another.[14]
Qatar–Saudi Arabia diplomatic conflict | |||||||
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Part of the Arab Spring, Arab Winter, and the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict | |||||||
Countries which have cut off diplomatic ties with Qatar during the Qatar diplomatic crisis
Countries which reduced diplomatic ties with or recalled ambassadors from Qatar during Qatar diplomatic crisis
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Main parties post-Arab Spring | |||||||
Saudi Arabia | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani | Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud | ||||||
Notes:
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Qatar has differences with the Saudi bloc on a number of issues: it broadcasts Al Jazeera, that supports the Arab Spring; it maintains relatively good relations with Iran, Saudi Arabia's key rival; and it has supported the Muslim Brotherhood in the past.[15] Saudi Arabia frames the conflict with Qatar as a subset of the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict due to Saudi Arabia's longstanding concern about the country's relationship with Iran and Iranian-backed militant groups.[16] However, Qatar maintains the conflict is an attempt for Saudi Arabia to reassert the hegemony over Qatar it enjoyed during the 20th century.[citation needed]
The Tunisian Revolution of January 2011[17] ousted longtime president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who fled to Saudi Arabia after being denied asylum in France. Widespread Al Jazeera coverage of the Bahraini uprising of 2011 fueled Saudi suspicions the Qatari government sought to overthrow the Saudi government via soft power. The Saudis then supported a largely successful counterrevolution to the Arab Spring to preserve the monarchy of Bahrain, overthrow the Egyptian democratically elected president Mohammad Morsi and stymie international support for the post-Gaddafi government in Libya. Since the 2013 Egyptian coup d'état by Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, there has been a consistent pattern of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt opposing the designs of Qatar and Turkey, who supported democratic Islamist and Salafi extremist groups, particularly in the Syrian Civil War.
Both Saudi Arabia and Qatar mediated through the GCC during the Yemeni Revolution against President Ali Abdullah Saleh, although Qatar was considered more pro-revolution and KSA more pro-Saleh. Both rivals also backed the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a key ally of Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah. Qatari involvement in the Syrian Civil War was initially far greater in 2013 than Saudi involvement, and their backing of rival revolutionary groups benefited the incumbent government of Bashar al-Assad and what would become the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.[18][19] In 2014, the two countries backed rival sides in the Second Libyan Civil War, which continues to intensify, and they had even temporarily severed diplomatic relations with each other. When Salman of Saudi Arabia ascended to the throne in 2015, the two began to cooperate more in Syria and fought alleged Houthi militias in the Yemeni Civil War.[15] Saudi-Qatari relations were seen near a high point when Qatar severed ties with Iran by recalling its ambassador from Tehran in response to the attacks on Saudi embassy there following the 2016 Saudi execution of Nimr al-Nimr.[20]
In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, the Maldives, Mauritania, Senegal, Djibouti, the Comoros, Jordan, the Tobruk-based Libyan government and finally the Hadi-led Yemeni government severed diplomatic relations with Qatar and blocked Qatar's airspace and sea routes along with Saudi Arabia blocking the only land crossing over its relations with Iran, Al-Jazeera reporting negative information about other GCC states and Egypt and the country's alleged support of Islamist groups.[21][22] Qatar was also expelled from the anti-Houthi coalition.[23] Qatar's defense minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah called the blockade akin to a bloodless declaration of war, and Qatar's finance minister Ali Sharif Al Emadi stated that Qatar is rich enough to withstand the blockade.[24][25] On 24 August 2017, Qatar announced that they would restore full diplomatic relations with Iran.[20] As the diplomatic standoff reached its second year, Saudi Arabia announced it would build a canal. Subsequently this could turn Qatar into an island.[26]