MP Calls for Saudi-Qatar Dialogue to End Crisis

A lawmaker said Qatar and Saudi Arabia should be encouraged to end their disputes through negotiations, noting that a conflict between the two sides would be against Iran's "doctrine of promoting stability."

Jahanbakhsh Mohebinia said "Qatari-Saudi conflict would be in the interest of extraterritorial powers. They can sell them more arms and extract political and oil concessions out of them," ICANA reported.

The escalation of tensions between the two Persian Gulf Arab neighbors could "lead to a war", he warned, saying that the possibility of such an encounter has become so serious that even some European countries now publicly oppose the US stance on the issue, calling for the dispute to be solved at the negotiating table.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt released statements on June 5, announcing a diplomatic break with the tiny peninsular nation. They also cut air, sea and land transportation links with Doha.

  Playing Both Sides

The lawmaker said US leaders are playing both sides. They first lured the Saudi ruler into striking a huge arms deal worth hundreds of billions of dollars, tipping the scales in their favor, and then made statements against Qatar backing Riyadh's claims, also forcing the Qatari rulers to sign arms deal with the US, he said.

On May 20, US President Donald Trump sealed the United States' single largest arms deal to date, valued at a whopping $100 billion with the oil kingdom.

Only five days after the Arab spat, Washington finalized a $12 billion arms deal that could give Qatar some of the most powerful military fighter jets on the planet.

Of course the US would support the House of Saud for now to exploit Doha more, Mohebinia noted, saying Washington would push Qatar to buy more weapons.

  Ripple Effect

In addition, the parliamentarian said other (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council members Oman and Kuwait could face the same situation if the current state of affairs is not reversed.

"Qatar has so far dug in its heels and stood against Saudi demands," he said, cautioning that "if Doha —through intimidation or military coup— becomes another vassal state to Riyadh, like Bahrain, then the same scenario will someday play out for Oman and to a lesser extent for Kuwait as well," plunging the whole region into more chaos.

"Riyadh-Doha talks to defuse the tensions are in Iran's interests and should be supported by all the parties to the dispute," the MP concluded.