Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
U.S. halts drills with Arab allies
Military’s Central Command cites Qatar diplomatic crisis as reason
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The U.S. military has halted some exercises with its Gulf Arab allies over the diplomatic crisis targeting Qatar, trying to use its influence to end the monthslong dispute, authorities said Friday.
While offering few details, the acknowledgment by the U.S. military’s Central Command shows the concern it has over the conflict gripping the Persian Gulf, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet and crucial bases for its campaign against the Islamic State militant group in Iraq and Syria, as well as the war in Afghanistan.
The Qatar crisis began June 5, when Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates began an economic boycott while closing off the energy-rich nation’s land border and its air and sea routes. The quartet of Arab nations pointed to Qatar’s alleged support of extremists and overly warm ties to Iran. Qatar long has denied supporting extremists and shares an offshore natural gas field with Tehran that makes its citizens have the highest per-capita income in the world.
Initially, U.S. military officials said the boycott and dispute had no impact on their operations. Qatar is home to the al-Udeid Air Base, the forward headquarters of Central Command that oversees the U.S.-led coalition’s bombing campaign of the Islamic State militant group and manages a direct line to Russia to manage Syria’s crowded skies.
But as the dispute went on, Defense Secretary James Mattis traveled to Doha to offer his support. President Donald Trump’s administration also agreed to an in-the-works sale of F-15 fighter jets to Qatar for $12 billion.
Air Force Col. John Thomas, a Central Command spokesman, acknowledged that it would be cutting back on the exercises.
“We are opting out of some military exercises out of respect for the concept of inclusiveness and shared regional interests,” Thomas said in a statement. “We will continue to encourage all partners to work together toward the sort of common solutions that enable security and stability in the region.”
Officials in Qatar did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while the boycotting nations have not acknowledged the disruption in military exercises with the U.S.
The Qatar diplomatic crisis has torn apart the Gulf Cooperation Council, a regional Arab bloc created in part as a counterbalance to Iran. The U.S. military holds exercises in part to build the confidence of local forces, many of which use American-made equipment.
Among the exercises likely to be affected is Eagle Resolve, an annual exercise held since 1999 that has Gulf Cooperation Council countries send forces alongside Americans to simulate working as a multinational force in battle. This year’s Eagle Resolve exercise, held in Kuwait in March, involved 1,000 U.S. troops.
U.S. and Gulf allies also have regularly held joint, smaller-scale exercises in the region.
The American military’s decision comes after an influential Republican senator said in June that he’d withhold approval of U.S. weapons sales to several Middle Eastern allies. Those moves together signal to Gulf countries that American officials want the crisis resolved sooner than later, said Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, a research fellow at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University.
“U.S. officials could be using a pressure point to express their frustration that what they see as a needless crisis and a distraction from far more urgent regional issues is going on so long,” Ulrichsen said. “It is likely an indication to longstanding security and defense partners that U.S. patience on this spat is not open-ended and is rapidly drawing to a close.”