Other GCC states weary of Qatar’s foreign policy

Qatar's foreign policy is at odds with its GCC neighbours, writes Turkhi Al Dakhil in Asharq Al Awsat. Other views: Europe's options on Crimea (Randa Taghee Deen/ Al Hayat) and Saudi-China alliance (Hussein Shabakshi/ Asharq Al Awsat).

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain were right to recall their ambassadors to Doha, not only because its activism has been harming their interests but also because it has adopted a highly paradoxical policy, wrote Saudi journalist Turki Al Dakhil in the London-based Arabic daily Asharq Al Awsat.

Check the Qatari policy, and you will find that it does one thing and its opposite at the same time: it has relations with Israel and with Hamas; it hosts a US military base in Al Udeid and promotes Al Qaeda rhetoric on Al Jazeera; it supports the Muslim Brotherhood and gives space to the cleric Yusuf Al Qaradawi to criticise the UAE and Saudi Arabia on the one hand and it has created the Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab Mosque (Wahhabism is Saudi Arabia’s austere strain of Islam that is at odds with the Brotherhood’s political Islam).

While Qatar endorses a GCC condemnation of Hizbollah’s actions in Bahrain, it hosts and gives airtime to Bahraini dissidents who seek to overthrow the rule of their nation’s ruler. When Saudi Arabia was making efforts to help establish order and support the winning majority in the parliamentary elections in Lebanon, Qatar was backing other parties, including Hizbollah.

Defenders of Qatar attempt to portray the problem as solely a disagreement between the three nations and Doha over the Egyptian situation. But Egypt is only part of the issue. Qatar has become a thorn in the side of the GCC states with its strong alliance with the Muslim Brotherhood, its backing of separatist groups and its media’s hostility towards the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The events in Bahrain, which are seen as an attempt to topple the political system, has been depicted as purely rights demands by Qatari media.

The Gulf states have been very tolerant of Qatar’s policy for 15 years. But when its activism puts their national security on the line, they are in the right to face the danger by all means available. Qatar is way off base if it thinks it can do without neighbouring countries. The GCC was partly created to prevent big countries from “swallowing” smaller ones.

In the same vein, UAE writer Mohammed Khalfan Al Sawafi wrote in the Abu Dhabi-based Al Ittihad newspaper that the decision of the three nations to withdraw ambassadors to Doha shows that they have agreed to put an end to the Qatari role on two levels: prevent it from using or speaking in the name of the GCC umbrella for political proposes, and second that they will not from now on accept any offence from Doha even if it is in the name of freedom of speech on its broadcaster Al Jazeera or in Friday sermons from Sheikh Al Qaradawi.

The ball is in Qatar’s court, if it does not rethink its policies, the incensed trio will take further ­action, Al Sawafi said.

Europeans must find a way to sanction Russia

Oil and gas prices have remained stable on European markets despite the crisis in Ukraine and Europe’s threats of sanctions against Russia, observed Randa Taghee Deen in the pan-Arab daily Al Hayat.

This stability in prices reflects Europe’s incapacity to impose oil and gas sanctions on Russia, because Russia is Europe’s most important supplier and any sanctions would incur high costs.

Europe does have alternative sources for oil and gas. Algeria and Qatar could be considered as potential gas suppliers, but this would take time and be more expensive. Saudi Arabia is the only country to currently have extra oil reserves of about 2.5 million barrels of oil per day. In the absence of Iranian and Libyan oil and the problems in Nigeria and Venezuela, there will be limited alternatives to Russian oil for Europe.

Should the US issue gas export licences to cater to Europe’s needs, it would be a precedent that must not be used to pressure on Russia. It would open a door closed since the oil embargo imposed during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War.

When European states abstained from buying Iranian oil, they knew alternative sources were available. “The situation with Russia is different and Putin is very much aware of this. Dreams of expansionism and his support for the Assad regime may just earn him other unexpected sanctions that would highly impact Russia’s economy,” the writer said.

Saudis and Chinese forge stronger ties

After successful visits aimed at strengthening strategic relations with Pakistan and developing political, scientific and economic relations with Japan, and shifting its relationships with India and the Maldives, Saudi Arabia plans to continue its recent approach to foreign policy in East Asia with Crown Prince Salman Bin Abdel Aziz’s impending visit to China.

“China has become a key power in the balance of trade with KSA, importing Saudi oil and petrochemicals. Considerable Saudi investments in China feature major companies such as Aramco, SABIC and Zamil”, observed columnist Hussein Shabakshi in the pan-Arab daily Asharq El Awsat.

On the other side of the equation, many Chinese companies have managed to win construction projects in Suadi, to build bridges, roads and railways.

KSA is opening up to China in an “integrated” manner, transforming a purely economic relationship into a deeply strategic one. A cultural mission has been established in China to further develop the bridges of trust and communication.

As products, goods and services evolve, the relationship between the two countries will gain in importance and grow to include cooperation in matters of security, especially regarding maritime piracy, the writer said.

* Digest compiled by Translation Desk