Who said what? Saudi Arabia suspends dialogue with Qatar after high-level phone call
Leaders in Qatar and Saudi Arabia have had their first high-level contact since a diplomatic crisis began three months ago, but terms of what was discussed are in dispute
Saudi Arabia on Saturday suspended any dialogue with Qatar, accusing it of distorting facts soon after a phone call between the rulers of both countries offered hope of a breakthrough in the three-month-old Gulf crisis.
Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, spoke to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to express interest in talks, state media from both sides said, in the first public engagement between the leaders after the US president offered to mediate in the crisis.
Saudi Arabia led the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain in cutting ties with Qatar in June, accusing it of bankrolling Islamist extremist groups and of being too close to regional rival Iran. Doha denies the accusations.
The crown prince “welcomed this desire,” the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) initially reported, adding “details will be announced after Saudi Arabia reaches an agreement with UAE and Bahrain and Egypt”.
But the prospect of a thaw quickly died down after SPA subsequently accused Qatar’s state media of wrongly implying that Saudi Arabia had initiated the outreach.
“The contact was at the request of Qatar and its request for dialogue,” SPA said, citing a Saudi foreign ministry official.
