Qatar's foreign minister on Monday voiced his country's readiness to discuss a possible means of resolving the ongoing crisis in inter-Arab relations, which first erupted in 2017, "without preconditions."

Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani made the remarks at a joint press conference in Doha with African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Faki, according to Al-Jazeera. "Qatar is ready to enter dialogue without preconditions," the foreign minister was quoted as saying. "But dialogue means that both sides should be committed to finding a solution."

On Sunday, Qatari officials discussed the issue with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to whom they stressed the importance of restoring Arab unity. In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain collectively severed ties with Doha, accusing it of supporting terrorism, and imposed an air, land and sea embargo on Qatar.

Doha, which announced last month it was quitting the Saudi-dominated OPEC oil cartel, vociferously denies the allegations, but the dispute has dragged on. The Qatari government has also blasted the blockade as unjustified and a violation of international law.