His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah holds summit talks with visiting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Erdogan visits Kuwait, Saudi Arabia to defuse Qatar crisis

KUWAIT: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday began a key trip to the Gulf aimed at defusing the standoff over Turkey’s ally Qatar, saying no one had an interest in prolonging the crisis. Erdogan, whose country has come to Qatar’s aid in the dispute, had talks in Jeddah with King Salman who hailed the Turkish leader’s “efforts in the fight against terrorism and its financing”, Saudi state news agency SPA reported. He also met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman before leaving for Kuwait for the second leg of his tour. Erdogan was received by Kuwait’s Amir HH Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who has been mediating to resolve the crisis.

On June 5, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt cut ties with Qatar, accusing it of backing extremism and fostering ties with their Shiite rival Iran. Doha denies the claim and has been strongly backed by Ankara throughout the standoff. The Turkish president will visit Qatar today for his first face-to-face talks with Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani since the crisis began. “No one has any interest in prolonging this crisis anymore,” Erdogan said before leaving Istanbul. He accused “enemies” of seeking to “fire up tensions between brothers” in the region.

Erdogan praised Qatar’s behavior in the crisis, saying Doha had sought to find a solution through dialogue. “I hope our visit will be beneficial for the region,” he said. The crisis has put Turkey in a delicate position, and Erdogan has repeatedly said he wants to see an end to the dispute as soon as possible. In recent years, Qatar has emerged as Turkey’s number one ally in the Middle East, with Ankara and Doha closely coordinating over issues including the Syria conflict where both are staunch foes of President Bashar Al-Assad.