Kuwait, US, Britain call for rapid solution to standoff

Tillerson and Sedwill reaffirmed their support to the mediation efforts made by Kuwait

Kuwait, the US and Britain have called for “a rapid end” to the crisis between Qatar and its Arab neighbours through dialogue, the media reported yesterday.

The call was issued on Monday by Kuwait’s Foreign Minister Shaikh Sabah Khalid Al Hamad Al Sabah at a meeting with visiting US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Britain’s National Security Advisor Mark Sedwill, Xinhua News Agency reported.

They “expressed deep concern” over continuation of the current crisis in the region, the report said.

They urged all parties to “contain this crisis rapidly, and to find a solution through dialogue as soon as possible”.

Efforts lauded

Tillerson and Sedwill reaffirmed their support to the mediation efforts made by Kuwait’s Emir Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah to solve the crisis.

Tillerson arrived in Kuwait on Monday to discuss the ways to broker an end to the crisis in the Gulf, which Washington fears could damage its counterterrorism operations.

The US has a huge base in Qatar, from where its military carries out air strikes at terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic ties with Qatar in June and cut off sea, land and air links to the tiny Gulf nation, over Doha’s support to terrorism, interference in their internal affairs and seeking closer ties with Iran.