Qatar-US terror pact ‘insufficient’

Riyadh : An agreement between Qatar and the United States on combating terror funding is “insufficient”, the four Arab states that imposed sanctions on the emirate said in a joint statement.

The move also follows efforts by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who flew into Saudi Arabia where he met Saudi King, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and held talks with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. 

Commitments made by Qatari authorities “cannot be trusted,” said a joint statement published by Saudi state news agency SPA.

The memorandum of understanding announced in Doha during a visit by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is “the result of pressure and repeated calls over the past years by the four states and their partners upon Qatar to stop supporting terrorism,” said Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

“This step is insufficient,” said the statement carried by Saudi state news agency SPA, adding that the four states would “carefully monitor the seriousness of Qatari authorities in combating all forms of financing, supporting and harbouring terrorism.”

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, participated in the meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs alongside US Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, in Jeddah. Kuwait’s Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Acting Minister of Information, Shaikh Mohammed Al-Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah was also present. 

The statement said commitments made by Qatari authorities “cannot be trusted,” citing previous agreements that have allegedly not been honoured.

It called for “strict monitoring controls to ensure its (Doha’s) seriousness in getting back to the natural and right path.”

Tillerson and Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani made the announcement at a joint news conference in
Doha.

The statement by the four states said sanctions against Qatar would continue until Doha “commits to comprehensively implement the just demands, including confronting terrorism and establishing stability and security in the region.”

The bloc has issued a list of 13 demands for Qatar including closing broadcast giant Al-Jazeera, downgrading ties to Iran and shutting a Turkish military base in the emirate. Oman has maintained ties with Qatar and joined the Kuwaiti and US-led crisis talks this week.