Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shourky reaffirmed on Wednesday that Qatar’s lamentable regional policy has seen no improvement that allows for restoring diplomatic ties with the peninsula.
“No change in national policies has been monitored,” Shoukry said on Doha’s behavior while pointing out that it has adopted “hostile” and “para-Arab” strategies. Qatar’s regional behavior has relentlessly worked towards undermining Arab cooperation, forcing neighboring states and Egypt to forge an alliance to deter its policies.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt formed a quartet for implementing a diplomatic boycott against Qatar after accusing it of funding terrorist organizations.
Speaking at a joint presser with Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi, Shoukry said that the four states’ stance on countering terrorism was reaffirmed at a recent four-way meeting held in Manama Bahrain.
Shoukry asserted Egypt's adherence to the thirteen conditions previously demanded by the Arab Quartet in order to end the dispute with Qatar, stating that there can be a chance for talks with Qatar only in the event that it displays genuine intention to change its policies, and stop interfering in other countries' internal affairs, hosting extremist organizations, and promoting them in its media outlets.
In June 2017, the four nations imposed sanctions on Qatar, cutting diplomatic and travel ties, after accusing the country of supporting the Muslim Brotherhood, fostering terrorism in the region, and allying with their regional foe Iran – all of which Qatar denied.
The nations then gave Qatar 10 days to comply with a list of 13 demands, including the closure of the Al-Jazeera international TV network, severing links with Iran, the closure of a Turkish military base on Qatari soil, and severing links with Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
While meeting in Cairo, Shoukry and Safadi elaborated on means of responding to recent regional developments in a manner promoting Arab causes and mutual interests.They commended the level of coordination at various levels between the two countries, and discussed means of boosting the exceptional bilateral ties.
The top diplomats exchanged views and perspectives over methods of activating joint Arab action in facing challenges, enhancing regional security and stability, as well as developments related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and crises in Syria, Yemen and Libya.
On the Syrian conflict, Safadi stressed the need for an effective Arab role to deal with the crisis and reach a political solution to return stability to the neighboring country.
