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Saudi Arabia and Qatar resume diplomatic relations through US-brokered deal

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – Saudi Arabia restored its severed ties with Qatar on Tuesday, as the two countries signed a US-brokered agreement to end their dispute and resolve the Gulf crisis that broke out three years ago, Axios reports. A Saudi-led coalition cut diplomatic relations with Qatar in 2017 on the grounds of alleged Qatari support for Iran and terrorist organizations.

The US has close ties with Qatar as well as with Saudi Arabia and Saudi coalition partners UAE and Bahrain. According to Axios, each side views Tuesday’s deal as both a “gesture” to the outgoing Trump administration and an “effort to ‘clean the table’ to prepare for the incoming Biden administration.”

Under the terms of the agreement, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain will remove their air and sea blockades of Qatar. In return, Qatar will withdraw all lawsuits against the three Gulf nations. Moreover, all parties will cease media campaigns against each other, Axios reports.

The deal was brokered by US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, together with White House envoy Avi Berkowitz and adviser Brian Hook, Axios said. Kushner went to Saudi Arabia to attend the signing of the deal during the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit.

The occasion of this year’s GCC summit marks the first time that Emir of Qatar Tamim Bin Hamad al-Thani has visited Saudi Arabia since diplomatic relations between the countries were broken off in 2017, Axios said.