“Qatar’s emir should have accepted the fair demands (of the boycotting states) and attended the summit,” Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa said in a tweet. The Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC) summit of six member states was held as Riyadh faces international pressure over the Oct 2. murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate. Saudi Arabia’s King Salman opened the gathering, urging fellow member states Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, the UAE and Qatar to maintain a united front against Iran and terrorism. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir reiterated in a press conference after the summit that Doha must meet the boycotting states’ demands and that the dispute would not affect military cooperation. A US State Department official on Sunday urged Gulf states to mend fences to confront Iran and enable a proposed Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA) grouping the GCC, Egypt and Jordan.

Source: Egypt Independent December 10, 2018 08:48 UTC