Qatar, Bahrain to restore diplomatic relations

Qatar and Bahrain decided to restore their diplomatic relations in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter and the provisions of the Vienna Treaty on Diplomatic Relations of 1961.

This came at the conclusion of the second meeting of the Qatari-Bahraini Follow-up Committee at the headquarters of the GCC General Secretariat in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

The official Qatar News Agency (QNA) stated late yesterday that the meeting “discussed the topics on the agenda, and reviewed the outcomes of the first meeting of both the Joint Legal Committee and the Joint Security Committee.”

“It was also decided to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries, in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter and the provisions of the Vienna Treaty on Diplomatic Relations of 1961,” it added.

The two sides affirmed that the step “comes out of a mutual desire to develop bilateral relations and enhance Gulf integration and unity (…) and respect for the principles of equality between states, national sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and good neighbourliness.”

Last February, the Qatari-Bahraini Follow-up Committee held its first meeting in Riyadh to discuss dealing with the “outstanding issues” between the two Gulf countries.

On 5 January 2021 the Al-Ula Summit in Saudi Arabia ended a boycott of Qatar by its Gulf neighbours and Egypt which was launched in June 2017. Ties between Doha and Manama were marred by repeated official Bahraini references to “pending issues”, according to observers.

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