As the five-month-long Gulf dispute still has no resolution, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani visited Turkey yesterday to hold talks with Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on issues including the Gulf crisis and regional developments.
The Qatari foreign minister met with Erdoğan to discuss the Gulf crisis, ongoing since June 5. Ankara has been calling on all sides to solve the conflict through dialogue. As Gulf countries severed diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar, accusing the emirate of supporting terrorism, Ankara has provided aid to Qatar in an effort to ease the adverse effect of the sanctions on people. Turkey sent food and medical equipment by cargo ships and planes to Doha to prevent adverse effects of the air and land blockade and meet people's immediate needs. Ankara deployed troops to its base in the country and held joint exercises in Qatar to boost military ties.
Gulf countries imposed a land, sea and air blockade on Qatar and presented a list of demands to Doha, including the closure of Al Jazeera television network and the Turkish base in Doha. Qatar announced that it would not adhere to the list and that to find common ground, the states imposing the embargo need to give up their hardline policy.
Ankara has been conducting active diplomacy to find common ground for a resolution, with Erdoğan having visited Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait in July. Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani paid his first visit abroad to Turkey following the crisis and met with Erdoğan to discuss the Gulf dispute in September as well.
Bilateral ties were also discussed during the Qatari foreign minister's visit, as the two countries prepare to hold the third meeting of the Turkey-Qatar Supreme Strategic Committee, which aims to further enhance ties between Doha and Ankara and provide consultations on international and regional issues. in Qatar in 2015.
