Alwaght- A Saudi-led economic blockade on Qatar is pushing the Persian Gulf country closer to neighboring Iran, foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani has said on Monday.
"They said Qatar was now closer to Iran. By their measures they are pushing Qatar to Iran," said top Qatari diplomat. "They are giving Iran, or any regional force, Qatar like a gift."
On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain severed relations with Qatar and imposed a blockade against it, accusing Doha of funding "terrorism". Qatar has vehemently rejected the allegations as "baseless".
On June 22, the group issued a 13-point list of demands, including the shutdown of Al Jazeera, limiting ties with Iran, and expelling Turkish troops stationed in the country as a prerequisite to lifting the blockade. Doha rejected all the demands, denouncing them as attempts to infringe Qatar's sovereignty
Over weeks ago, the Saudi regime suspended plans to hold talks with Qatar on how to resolve the ongoing crisis between minutes after Riyadh apparently accepted dialogue offer by Doha.
According to reports, on 8th September, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a phone conversion, the first official contact between Doha and Riyadh since the start of the crisis more than three months ago.
In the phone call, which was reported by state media from both countries, the two leaders expressed a willingness to discuss an end to the rift.
"During the call, the emir of Qatar expressed his desire to sit at the dialogue table and discuss the demands of the four countries to ensure the interests of all," Saudi state news agency SPA reported, adding that "the details will be announced later".
