Home GCC Kuwait Kuwait’s Emir urges Qatar to exercise restraint Sheikh Al-Sabah told his Qatari counterpart that he hoped he would give a chance to efforts aimed at “containing tension in brotherly relations among brothers” by Robert Anderson June 6, 2017 Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah urged Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to exercise restraint in a phone call on Monday after Saudi Arabia other Arab states moved to isolate the country for its alleged links to terrorist organisations. Yesterday, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya’s eastern government and the Maldives severed diplomatic relations and shut transport links with Qatar causing chaos at the country’s airports and panic buying in its supermarkets. Read: Saudi, UAE, Bahrain and Egypt sever ties with Qatar over ‘terrorism’ During the call, Sheikh Al-Sabah told his Qatari counterpart that he hoped he would give a chance to efforts aimed at “containing tension in brotherly relations among brothers”, according to state news agency KUNA. He went on to reiterate the importance of bolstering common Gulf action to serve the “interests of the GCC countries”, KUNA reported. Separately a Kuwait Foreign Ministry official said the country would continue to take a “moderate and balanced” approach to regional issues. Assistant foreign minister ambassador Sheikh Dr Ahmad Nasser Mohammad Al-Sabah said Kuwait was keen to boost cooperation between countries. Earlier in the day, Kuwait’s Emir received a verbal message from Saudi Arabia’s King Salman conveyed by Prince Khaled bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud regarding bilateral relations. The nature of the comments was not disclosed. It is believed that Kuwait and Oman, which have not taken the same steps as their Gulf neighbours, will act as mediators during the current disagreement. Qatar’s foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed Al-Thani contacted his counterparts in Tunisia, Sudan, Algeria, Morocco and Pakistan on Monday to discuss the boycott and potentially ensure that other countries did not follow suit. He was also in contact with foreign ministers in Russia, Iran, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. Should the boycott continue it is expected to have repercussions beyond the region as Qatar acts as a major connection point for international travellers. Read: GCC rift threatens air travel disruption regionally and globally 0 Comments