Hugh Naylor
KUWAIT CITY // Kuwait’s emir urged Arab leaders on Tuesday to end disputes and provide a united front on crises across the region..
Speaking at the Arab League summit in Kuwait City, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah said, the “dangers around us are enormous and we will not move towards joint Arab action without our unity and without casting aside our differences”.
While Sheikh Sabah called for closer ties, his Qatari counterpart struck a more defiant tone on Tuesday amid divisions between Doha and Arabian Gulf states over Egypt.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani suggested that the Egyptian government reverses its ban on the Brotherhood by calling for it to open “political dialogue”.
Doha had backed the Brotherhood’s Mohammed Morsi who was elected president but removed by the military last July following mass protests against his rule.
Earlier this month the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain withdrew their ambassadors from Qatar over its support for the Brotherhood and its affiliates across the region.
Following Mr Morsi’s removal, the UAE and Saudi Arabia offered financial support to the new rulers in Cairo, which cracked down on the Brotherhood, a move that curtailed Doha’s aspirations for regional influence.
Sheikh Tamim also called out Arab leaders for not aiding a Qatari proposal last year that called for providing US$1 billion (Dh3.67 billion) in aid for Palestinian residents of Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem. Without naming Iraqi prime minister Nouri Al Maliki, Sheikh Tamim criticised what he said were attempts to sideline Iraq’s Sunni minority.
Sheikh Tamim’s speech highlighted how difficult it will be to resolve disputes between Arab nations as they also compete for influence over rebel groups fighting to overthrow Syrian President Bashar Al Assad.
A session dedicated to addressing the fallout from Syria was reportedly planned for the annual meeting of the 22-member Arab League. But before Tuesday’s session began, Khaled Al Jarallah, Kuwait’s undersecretary for foreign affairs, said it was cancelled.
“Gulf reconciliation, and Gulf issues are something for inside the Gulf house,” he said.
A senior Kuwaiti official told The National that discussions regarding the unprecedented divisions took place behind the scenes, but will not be addressed publicly at the summit. The rift is so intense that it can only be handled at the most senior level, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Seeking to end the conflict between Doha and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, Kuwait’s Sheikh Sabah, has reportedly sought to take a personal role in smoothing the tensions.
Shortly before the summit at Bayan Palace began, Sheikh Sabah, smiling, stood between Sheikh Tamim and Saudi Crown Prince Salman, embracing them in an attempt to convey a sense of reconciliation.
The Kuwait official said that mid-level diplomats were shuttling between the countries in an attempt to resolve the dispute.
“But this has to be done at the top now,” the official said. “It’s at a point where we can’t do anything and it’s over our heads now.”
Abdulkhaleq Abdullah, a political analyst in the UAE, said he was not surprised that the dispute was not addressed openly at Tuesday’s meeting.
“This is a serious one and it’s nothing that will go away any time soon. I see this as deep and it might even get more tense.
The Kuwaiti official doubted whether the crisis holds the potential to break up the GCC.
“Look, the GCC is more important to these countries than no GCC,” the Kuwaiti official said. “They have many common interests ... this crisis is not enough to break the union.”
