Kuwaiti Emir Holds Talks With Saudi King Amid Diplomatic Row Around Qatar

DUBAI (Sputnik) — According to Kuwait News Agency, during the talks held in the western Saudi city of Jidda, the two leaders reviewed brotherly relations between the two countries as well as the latest developments in the region.

Apart from the emir, Kuwait's delegation at the negotiations was represented by a number of top officials including First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah Khalid al Hamad al Sabah. The talks were also attended by top government officials from the Saudi side, including Adviser to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Makkah Governor Prince Khalid bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz al Saud.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Arab media reported, that during the visit to Saudi Arabia, the Kuwaiti ruler would act as a mediator to resolving the diplomatic rift around Qatar. On Monday, the Kuwaiti emir's press service said in a statement that the emir urged his Qatari counterpart Tamim Hamad al-Thani in a telephone conversation to refrain from actions that would escalate the crisis in the diplomatic ties with the Gulf states.

On Monday, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt announced a break in diplomatic relations with Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorist organizations and destabilizing the situation in the Middle East. The authorities of eastern Libya, Yemen, as well as the Maldives and Mauritania, later also announced the severance of relations with Qatar. On Tuesday, the Jordanian authorities announced lowering the level of diplomatic contacts with Qatar.

The Qatari Foreign Ministry rejected the accusations of Doha's interference in other countries' domestic affairs and expressed regret over the decision of the Gulf States to cut off the diplomatic ties with it.