Persian Gulf Crisis: Qatar FM in Kuwait to Respond to Demands
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Qatar's foreign minister has arrived in Kuwait to hand over the state's response to the list of 13 demands from Saudi Arabia and three other countries.
Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani is meeting Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah on Monday to discuss the demands.
Al Thani was expected to deliver a handwritten letter from Qatar's emir, according to state-run Kuwait News Agency. Kuwait is mediating in the dispute.
Al Thani was set to immediately fly back to Qatar after the meeting, Al Jazeera reported.
Qatar's response will be the focus of a gathering in Cairo on Wednesday of foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the UAE.
The four countries severed diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed sanctions on it on June 5, accusing it of supporting "terrorism". The allegation has been rejected by Doha as "baseless".
They also imposed a land, sea and air embargo.
After more than two weeks, the four countries gave Doha 10 days, or until Sunday night, to comply with a 13-point demand list in exchange for the end of the anti-Qatar measures.
The demands included that Qatar shut down the Al Jazeera Media Network, close a Turkish military base and scale down ties with Iran.
Late on Sunday, the four countries said it would meet on Wednesday in Cairo to discuss their next steps.
Qatar's foreign minister has already said that Doha would not meet the demands, saying the list "was meant to be rejected".
Speaking on Saturday, the foreign minister said Doha offered instead "a proper condition for a dialogue" to resolve the Persian Gulf crisis.
US President Donald Trump spoke separately with leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi late on Sunday.
He "underscored that unity in the region is critical to accomplishing the Riyadh summit's goals of defeating terrorism and promoting regional stability", the White House said.
