Background to the Qatar – Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) crises of 2017
The Cooperation Council of Arab States of the Gulf was originally known as Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and comprised of all Arabian countries of Persian Gulf i.e Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. It was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Riyadh. Qatar is the smallest of all and was the poorest of all gulf nations till about four decades ago. However, owing to the presence of large gas reserves in its region, it rose to be the richest country in the GCC, and became an influential player in the region’s politics. Qatar has also used its wealth and influence on the wider global stage.
Qatar shares a huge gas field with Iran, which is an incentive for it to retain good relations with the Shiite regime in Tehran. It also forged good relations with USA and houses the biggest US bases and Naval resources in the Gulf. Its influential leader Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani also started a prominent media AL-Jazira.
Major Irritants between GCC Nations and Qatar leading to blockade against Qatar.
- Qatar’s good relations with Iran.
- It’s support to elements of Palestinian Hamas which is supported by Iran.
- It’s support to Muslim Brotherhood a body controlled by Sunni clerics in Egypt.
- Support to Islamist groups in Syria.
United States President Donald Trump had expressed support for the Saudi-led embargo, and called Qatar a “funder of terror”. This was surprising given Qatar’s close ties with the US and its allies, and the fact that the country hosts a massive American military facility at the al-Udeid air base.
Breakdown of relations between GCC and Qatar
In 2017, Saudi Arabia led an Arab transport blockade against Qatar, ostensibly to punish Doha for its ties with radical Islamist groups. The bigger motivation probably was to pressure Qatar into reducing diplomatic and economic relations with Iran, Saudi Arabia’s great rival in the region. Coalition countries put 13 demands as conditions to resume relations, including shutting news organisations such as Al Jazeera, closing a Turkish military base in the country, and downgrading ties with Tehran.
Qatar called the embargo a violation of international laws and instead, strengthened ties with Iran and Turkey. Importantly, Gulf Co-operation Council members Kuwait and Oman broke ranks with the Saudi group, and Kuwait sought to assume the role of mediator between the coalition and Qatar.
Breakthrough in Crisis
Approximately three years after a Saudi Arabia-led coalition of four Middle Eastern countries cut ties with Qatar, the Saudi Foreign Minister announced on Tuesday that Riyadh and its three Arab allies would restore full ties with Doha. Qatar’s emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani attended a gathering of Gulf Arab states and was photographed with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Trump did an about-turn in 2018, however, and praised Qatar’s efforts to combat terrorism.
The breakthrough came in late 2020, the result of sustained Kuwaiti mediation efforts and intensified US pressure on the Gulf coalition. Trump’s senior advisor Jared Kushner visited Saudi and Qatar in December. Kushner was among the senior US officials present at the GCC summit in al-Ula in the second week of January 2021. An agreement was reached to open airspace and land and sea borders between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. India among other nations has welcomed this development.