Murad Erifi
07 January 2021•Update: 08 January 2021
ISTANBUL
The UAE will soon resume transport and trade with Qatar, an Emirati minister said on Thursday.
"Transport and trade between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in line with the Al-Ula agreement will take place within a week of the signing of the agreement," said Anwar Gargash, the UAE’s state minister for foreign affairs.
On Tuesday, the city of Al-Ula in northwestern Saudi Arabia, hosted the 41st Gulf Summit, which saw the announcement of the end of a Gulf crisis that continued since 2017 between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt.
"The Al-Ula agreement was the result of a Saudi effort, and Kuwaiti and US’ mediation, and it establishes a mechanism for several committees to work on to remove boycott procedures within a week, in addition to bilateral tracks to address issues between countries," Gargash said.
"We are happy that we have turned the page of this crisis, and we are looking forward to the future of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the country [UAE] is working to implement the Al-Ula agreement," he added.
In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt imposed a land, air and sea blockade on Qatar, claiming its support for terrorism, which Doha denied and considered it an attempt to undermine its sovereignty.
*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat
