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Anti-Qatar media campaign in the Gulf: Cracks in the Islamic Military Alliance?
Global Village Space |
James M. Dorsey |
Cracks have appeared in a Saudi-led, US-backed anti-terrorist political and military alliance days after the US President Donald J. Trump ended a historic visit to Saudi Arabia. The cracks stem from Qatar’s long-standing fundamental policy differences with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates about Iran and the role of political Islam.
The cracks emerged as the result of an anti-Qatar media and cyber campaign involving a spate of anti-Qatar articles in US and Gulf media; the blocking of Qatar-backed media websites and broadcasts in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt; statements by prominent former US government officials; and a recent seminar by the Washington-based Foundation for the Defense of Democracies that has long asserted that Qatar supports militant groups.
Read more: Trump’s first foreign trips only indicate one thing…
The policy differences have rekindled a long-standing rift within the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the regional association that groups Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman that is rooted in geography and history.
Seemingly emboldened by Mr. Trump’s blanket endorsement of Saudi Arabia’s proxy war against Iran and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed’s visceral opposition to political Islam, Gulf states appear to believe that the time is right to again pressure Qatar to alter policies it sees as key to its national security. The crown prince reportedly maintains a close working relationship with powerful Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Concerns regarding IMAFT
An earlier attempt by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain to force Qatar to align itself with the three states’ hard line positions failed in 2014 when Qatar refused to bow after they withdrew their ambassadors from Doha. The ambassadors returned to their posts after a 10-month absence with little, if any, change in Qatari policies.
The policy differences have rekindled a long-standing rift within the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the regional association that groups Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman that is rooted in geography and history. Qatar, unlike other Gulf states, shares the world’s largest gas field with Iran.
The differences reflect concern among many non-Arab members of the Saudi-led, 41-Muslim nation military alliance that the grouping is becoming an anti-Iranian grouping rather than one focused on combatting jihadism. They also erupted at a moment that Saudi Arabia is looking at attempting to destabilize Iran by fomenting unrest among the Islamic republic’s ethnic minorities – a move that worries Pakistan and other coalition members.
Qatar’s ability to mediate in conflicts involving militant groups like the Taliban and various jihadist groups is a pillar of its troubled effort to project soft power. Its relationship with controversial groups like the Muslim Brotherhood is strategic and goes back to the founding of the Gulf state. The Brotherhood populated key educational and government institutions in Qatar and other Gulf states at a time that they did not have needed professionals of their own.
Read full article:
Anti-Qatar media campaign in the Gulf: Cracks in the Islamic Military Alliance?
Global Village Space |
James M. Dorsey |
Cracks have appeared in a Saudi-led, US-backed anti-terrorist political and military alliance days after the US President Donald J. Trump ended a historic visit to Saudi Arabia. The cracks stem from Qatar’s long-standing fundamental policy differences with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates about Iran and the role of political Islam.
The cracks emerged as the result of an anti-Qatar media and cyber campaign involving a spate of anti-Qatar articles in US and Gulf media; the blocking of Qatar-backed media websites and broadcasts in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt; statements by prominent former US government officials; and a recent seminar by the Washington-based Foundation for the Defense of Democracies that has long asserted that Qatar supports militant groups.
Read more: Trump’s first foreign trips only indicate one thing…
The policy differences have rekindled a long-standing rift within the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the regional association that groups Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman that is rooted in geography and history.
Seemingly emboldened by Mr. Trump’s blanket endorsement of Saudi Arabia’s proxy war against Iran and UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed’s visceral opposition to political Islam, Gulf states appear to believe that the time is right to again pressure Qatar to alter policies it sees as key to its national security. The crown prince reportedly maintains a close working relationship with powerful Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Concerns regarding IMAFT
An earlier attempt by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain to force Qatar to align itself with the three states’ hard line positions failed in 2014 when Qatar refused to bow after they withdrew their ambassadors from Doha. The ambassadors returned to their posts after a 10-month absence with little, if any, change in Qatari policies.
The policy differences have rekindled a long-standing rift within the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the regional association that groups Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman that is rooted in geography and history. Qatar, unlike other Gulf states, shares the world’s largest gas field with Iran.
The differences reflect concern among many non-Arab members of the Saudi-led, 41-Muslim nation military alliance that the grouping is becoming an anti-Iranian grouping rather than one focused on combatting jihadism. They also erupted at a moment that Saudi Arabia is looking at attempting to destabilize Iran by fomenting unrest among the Islamic republic’s ethnic minorities – a move that worries Pakistan and other coalition members.
Qatar’s ability to mediate in conflicts involving militant groups like the Taliban and various jihadist groups is a pillar of its troubled effort to project soft power. Its relationship with controversial groups like the Muslim Brotherhood is strategic and goes back to the founding of the Gulf state. The Brotherhood populated key educational and government institutions in Qatar and other Gulf states at a time that they did not have needed professionals of their own.
Read full article:
Anti-Qatar media campaign in the Gulf: Cracks in the Islamic Military Alliance?
