Qatar’s emir said on Friday that his country has been targeted by an “unprecedented” plot and thanked Turkey for supporting his country during the ongoing crisis.
“It is clear that the campaign against us was pre-planned. We took a test and passed it,” Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said in his first televised address since the crisis started last month.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain cut diplomatic ties with Qatar last month, and imposed a sea and land blockade while accusing Doha of supporting terrorism.
Al Thani thanked Turkey for “putting into force quickly a cooperation agreement signed between us and meeting our basic needs.” He said:
People should no longer pay the price for political disputes among governments.
“Qatar is fighting terrorism relentlessly and without compromise, and the international community recognises this,” Sheikh Tamim said in the televised speech. He spoke hours after US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the United States was satisfied with Qatar’s efforts to implement an agreement aimed at combating terror financing, and urged the four states to lift their “land blockade”.
His remarks came ahead of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s two-day Gulf tour starting Sunday as part of his efforts to resolve the crisis in the region.
His first stop will be in the Saudi port city of Jeddah, during which he will meet Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman al-Saud.
Erdogan will then depart for Kuwait and later Qatar, and will meet Al Thani and Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah.
Timeline: Arab rift with Qatar
Relations among Gulf countries will be the focus, and leaders are expected to exchange views on regional and international issues, and present proposed solutions to end regional tensions, the presidential office said.
Doha denies the accusation of terrorism and contends the blockade is a violation of international law.