Qatar crisis deadline extended by 2 days as nation responds

DOHA, QATAR — Arab nations isolating Qatar extended a deadline Monday for the energy rich country to respond to their demands by another 48 hours, allowing its top diplomat to carry a handwritten response to Kuwait’s ruler in an effort to end the diplomatic crisis.

Whether another two days will be enough to end the crisis, however, may be a stretch.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain already have plans to meet in Cairo on Wednesday as the deadline expires to discuss their next moves. Meanwhile, Qataris signed a wall bearing a black-stencil likeness of their ruler, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, as officials in the host country of the 2022 FIFA World Cup maintain that they won’t allow other nations to dictate their foreign policy.

The crisis began June 5, as the countries cut off diplomatic ties to Qatar over their allegations that the world’s top producer of liquefied natural gas uses its wealth to fund extremist groups and has overly warm ties to Iran. Qatar long has denied funding terrorists, while it maintains communication with Iran as the two countries share a massive offshore natural gas field.

The quartet of countries first restricted Qatar’s access to their airspace and ports, while sealing its only land border, which it shares with Saudi Arabia. They later issued a 13-point list of demands on June 22 to end the standoff and gave Qatar 10 days to comply.

Early on Monday morning after the deadline expired, the countries said they would give Qatar another 48 hours after a request by Kuwait’s 88-year-old ruler, Sheikh Sabah Al Sabah. The emir has been trying to mediate an end to the crisis, as he did in a similar dispute in 2014.

“The response of the four states will then be sent following the study of the Qatari government’s response and assessment of its response to the whole demands,” the countries said in a statement.

Qatar’s foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, traveled later Monday to Kuwait City, carrying a handwritten note from Sheikh Tamim, according to the staterun Kuwait News Agency. Kuwaiti and Qatari officials did not respond to questions about what the letter said, though a photograph from the meeting showed Sheikh Sabah reading it with no expression on his face.