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Analysis: How Qatar Became an Inherent Factor in American Foreign Policy

2023-10-27 20:10:33Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Analysis: How Qatar Became an Inherent Factor in American Foreign Policy
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as he talks with Qatari officials

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani announced this week that negotiations for the release of Hamas hostages were making progress. International pressure is growing towards this Persian Gulf state, to help release them, in conditions where more than 200 people are still being held hostage or missing, and while the Gaza Strip is facing major food shortages, water and electricity.

Qatar's relationship with Hamas, and the state's Oct. 7 statements that it held Israel fully responsible for the escalation of violence, have fueled public discontent in the United States, but analysts see Qatar as an important player in efforts to mediate the conflict.

Qatari leaders played an essential role in the release of the Israeli hostages. Qatari officials helped broker deals for the release of two Israeli women held hostage by Hamas on Monday — just days after negotiating the release of a mother and her daughter, both American citizens.

Qatar has good relations with the United States. In the fuel-rich kingdom, there is a large US military base, one of the largest in the region, located at Al Udeid Air Base. The military base was built by Qatar in 1996, a decision that was hailed by US officials in 2002, during the visit of former US Vice President Dick Cheney.

The United States' relationship with Qatar dates back to 1972 and is centered on the principles of regional security, energy, and education. Qatar cooperates with the US military in counter-terrorism and countering violent extremism, with operations extending to the Horn of Africa.

After the Taliban group seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021, Qatar's role in coordinating the safe departure of tens of thousands of people from the country – including contractors and US citizens – was deemed highly dubious by the US government.

Nearly 40 percent of all evacuees left through Qatar. Qatar also played an important role in hosting meetings between US officials and members of the Taliban group in the country's capital Doha, which were led by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad. Although the talks failed, they showed how much the United States relies on Qatar as an important mediator.

Because of these efforts and not only, US President Joe Biden announced Qatar as an important ally outside the NATO alliance in March 2022.

"I am making this decision in recognition of Qatar's contributions over the years to US-led efforts in this US Central Command area of ​​responsibility and as an expression of our national interest in deepening bilateral defense and security cooperation with the State of Qatar," President Biden wrote in a letter to Congress.

Most recently, Qatar brokered the release of five American prisoners held by Iran, as well as the release of Ukrainian children held by Russia.

A shaped role

Qatar has been shaping its role as a stable broker for years.

In 2008, when Hezbollah took control of key infrastructure points in Lebanon, including the airport and key ports, it was Qatar that brought the Shiite militant group and its Western-backed rivals to the negotiating table. The talks concluded with the Doha Agreement, which prevented the escalation of the crisis and the risk of Lebanon plunging into a new civil war.

Qatar's relations with traditional enemies of the United States such as Iran and Russia – or militant groups such as Hamas and the Taliban – have made it a valuable partner for the United States and other Western countries.

"Qatar is a very close partner of the United States on a host of issues that are fundamental to both our countries and to this region - from working together to evacuate Americans, Afghans and nationals of other countries from Afghanistan, to close cooperation to respond to humanitarian emergencies, such as in the case of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria", US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters at a press conference in Doha on October 13.

Analysts say Qatar's ability to maintain good relations with state and non-state actors such as Russia and Iran, while still remaining a strategic partner of the United States, will continue to increase the country's importance on the world stage.

"Qatar is framing this achievement — and the resulting praise from the United States — as evidence that the strategy it is pursuing to keep open the lines of communication with many rival actors is backfired. His role in the current conflict is giving impetus to his geopolitical ambitions," wrote Lina Khatib, director of the Middle East Institute at the University of London, in an article this week in "Barron's."

Others say ties to groups like Hamas are grounds for a more detailed scrutiny of Qatar, the world's third-largest natural gas exporter with a population of just 300,000.

"It is a double-edged sword. Qatar must send the right message, because although the Americans are expressing gratitude and appreciation towards this country, its image is being hit", says the professor of the "Georgetown" University in Qatar, Mehran Kamrava, in an interview for the "Financial Times" newspaper. / VOA


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