Gulf Cooperation Council Unhelpful In Ensuring Regional Stability Amid Qatar Row - Doha

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd January, 2019) The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has been ineffective in preserving regional security and stability since a number of regional powers imposed a blockade on Qatar, Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said Tuesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"Right now it has been more than 20 months since the blockade of Qatar and nothing has progressed, nothing has been achieved by the GCC as an organization ... My country has this geopolitical conflict right now with three of the Gulf countries, which really paralyzed the GCC to be a force of stability ... If you have each country as acting separately, it has no power," Al Thani said at a session, titled "Peace and Reconciliation in a Multipolar World."

On June 5 the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and non-GCC member Egypt cut off diplomatic relations and communication with Qatar, accusing the country of supporting terrorism and interfering in their internal affairs. The Maldives, Mauritius and Mauritania followed suit, while Jordan and Djibouti reduced the level of their diplomatic missions in Qatar. Doha has refuted the allegations and criticized the restrictive measures imposed against it.