Alwaght- Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah has warned that the ongoing conflict between Qatar and four Saudi-led regimes states is likely to escalate.
Addressing the Kuwaiti parliament on Tuesday, the Emir noted that Kuwait's goal as the leading mediator in the crisis was to save the [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) union from “cracking and collapsing.”
"Everyone should know that Kuwait's mediation is based on a keen awareness that this crisis risks escalation," the Kuwaiti king pointed out.
"An escalation would be an explicit invitation for regional and international intervention, which would have serious consequences for the security of the [Persian] Gulf nations and their people," he added.
"History and future generations will not forgive anyone who contributes, even one word, to fueling this dispute," al-Sabah noted.
The comments come after US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson expressed dismay over the lack of preparedness by both sides of the dispute to resolve their differences following his recent visit to Riyadh and Doha.
"We cannot force talks among people who are not ready to talk," Tillerson said.
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 TV, 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
Qatar is the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas, and also houses the region's biggest US military base with more than 11,000 American troops.
