Saudi Arabia opens borders with Qatar as Gulf rift eases
- The step is part of efforts to resolve a dispute that has split Qatar from its neighbours since 2017
- It comes just before regional leaders meet at the Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday
Saudi Arabia will open its land, air and sea borders with Qatar on Monday evening, a Gulf official said, dramatically easing a years-long diplomatic rift on the eve of a summit of regional leaders.
The step comes as part of efforts to resolve the dispute that has split Qatar from its neighbours since 2017, Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Ahmad Nasser Al-Sabah said in a statement on Qatar-based television channel Al Jazeera.
The details have been hammered out before the annual Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
The deal nearly fell apart on Sunday, but the White House and other parties stayed on the phone overnight to reach an agreement, according to a person familiar with the matter. Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, is travelling to Saudi Arabia for the accord signing on Tuesday, the person said.
Other disputes have riven the six nations of the GCC – comprised of Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates – but none has lasted as long or cut as deep as the current one.
