Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said on Monday that a list of demands still hadn't been submitted to Qatar by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain who together imposed stringent economic and travel measures two weeks ago, accusing the Qataris of supporting extremist Islamist groups. These are allegations which Qatar strongly denies.
"We cannot just have vague demands such as 'the Qataris know what we want from them, they have to stop this or that, they have to be monitored by a foreign monitoring mechanism,'" added Sheikh Mohammed who said his country's internal affairs are 'non-negotiable.'
Business leaders have criticized the blockade, which has particularly hit Qatar's import goods. Sheikh Mohammed revealed aviation support has come from Iran after Saudi Arabia closed its airspace to Qatari airlines.
"We have a back-up plan which depends mainly on Turkey, Kuwait and Oman," he continued.
After Turkish businesspeople exported food products by air to Qatar, Istanbul-based Turkish-Qatari QT Logistics will send food aid to the country by sea. Accelerating the process with the support of the Ministry of Economy, the company will send the first shipment of 4,000 tons of freight belonging to six companies to Qatar from the Aliağa district of İzmir province today.
Founded by Qatari businessman Abdul Latif al Meer in Istanbul, QT Logistics provided a new solution to overcome the blockade that hindered the food import of the country. The proposal of the company, which plans to ship the products of Turkish exporters with cargo ships that can carry frozen food, was accepted by the Ministry of Economy. Carrying eggs, milk, fresh vegetables, fruit and vegetable oils from six Turkish companies, the Green Guatemala ship will leave Aliağa Batı Çim Port today.
These backup suppliers are important as, with current tensions escalating and crisis talks expected, the UAE's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Gargash, warned that the current sanctions could last several years.
"This isolation can take years," Gargash said. "They have built a sophisticated podium for jihadism and Islamic extremism. They support groups linked to Al-Qaeda in Syria, Libya... and in Yemen. This state is weaponising jihadists and Islamists, it is using this as a weapon of influence," he added.
