CONTEMPORARY EURASIA VOLUME VII (1, 2) Contemporary-Eurasia-3new | Page 83

ARAKS PASHAYAN
political participation and electoral legitimacy, of which the Muslim Broth-
erhood is perhaps the best example, was seen as a threat, because it off ered
a diff erent model of Islamist politics to that of the Saudi state.
The Qatar-Gulf clash. Inside story
As already mentioned, in June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain,
and Egypt fi nally suspended diplomatic relations with Qatar and subjected
the small country to air, land, and water blockades. Qatar, in the meantime,
had gained signifi cance politically and economically and was in the process
of being charged with supporting extremism and terrorism. It is noteworthy
that on May 21, 2017, a new wave of confl ict between Qatar and its neigh-
bors began in Riyadh, about two weeks after the joint summit of GCC and
the USA, and US President Trump’s visit to the region. 10 The fi nal declara-
tion adopted at the Summit “condemned the destructive role of Iran in the
Middle East” and “interference in the aff airs of the region. 11
The US President’s visit to Saudi Arabia further highlighted the aspi-
rations of both sides, Washington’s desire in particular, to activate the an-
ti-Iranian front; one of the goals of Washington was also the rapprochement
of Saudi Arabia and Israel. At the same time, it is unlikely that Riyadh had
not previously warned the United States about its movement to break rela-
tions with Qatar and had not attained the United States’ consent to do so, if
we also consider Trump’s unwithheld support for Mohammad bin Salman.
The confrontation between Qatar and the Quartet states became the
basis for the statement on regional cooperation made by Hamad Al Thani,
which was posted on the Qatari state news agency website and which
noted in particular: “It’s not wise to have strained relationship with Iran,
which is a powerful state and a guarantor of stability in the region.” Af-
terward, the representative of the Qatar Foreign Ministry said that the
Qatari agency website had been hacked and Qatar Emir’s statement was
posted by the hackers. 12 Some of the requirements set forth referred to
the closure of Qatari Al Jazeera and its sister structures. It was considered
that Al Jazeera had served as an information and propaganda platform in
the course of the Arab Spring processes. Doha shaped the emerging nar-
ratives of protests through Al Jazeera media network.
10
11
12
“US, GCC Summit communiqué condemns Iran’s regional interferences,” Al-Arabiya En-
glish, May 22, 2017, http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2017/05/22/US-GCC-Sum-
mit-communique-condemns-Iran-s-regional-interferences.html (accessed April 7, 2018).
Ibid.
Т. А. Shmelyova, “Istoki confl ikta mezhdu Saydovskoh Araviyeh i Qatarom,” (In Russian),
[“The sources of confl ict between Saudi Arabia and Qatar.”], Insitute of the Middle East ,
Junе 5, 2018, http://www.iimes.ru/?p=44881 (accessed September 2, 2018).
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