The Gulf Arab leaders met on 5th January 2021 and signed an agreement of stability and solidarity which marked the end of a diplomatic rift with Qatar at a summit in Saudi Arabia. Prince Mohammed Bin Salman stated about the stability amid a breakthrough in the dispute between a Saudi-led bloc and Qatar started in June 2017.
The Al-Ula statement helped conclude an agreement that was signed at the summit. The Prince thanked the United States and Kuwait for their mediation and help to solve the rift. The peace agreement was a much-needed effort for today to confront challenges in today’s world and create unified Gulf states against Iran.
Leaders of the six members Gulf Cooperation Council signed the Al-Ula declaration which got named after the Saudi city where the summit was held. The contents of the agreement were not immediately released but it created a stir overnight when Saudi Arabia announced that it will open its borders to Qatar despite its issues with its neighbors.
The summit was marked positive by the Prime Minister and Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Al Maktoum. This summit helped establish fraternity and enabled Gulf strength, cohesion, and cooperation as well as Arab depth and stability. This is said to begin a process to heal the damages caused over the past three years. The focus primarily is going to stay on the terms of the Al- Ula which would reaffirm their commitment to the unity of the GCC.
Qatar saw a complete blockade of all its, land, sea, and air routes along with the cut-off in diplomatic and trade ties with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, and Bahrain in June 2017. This was due to the closeness of Doha with Iran and an attempt to support terrorist groups. This was however denied by Qatar who claimed its neighbors to attack its sovereignty.
