Saudi king on regional tour ahead of GCC summit
Saudi king on regional tour ahead of GCC summit
Saudi Arabia's King Salman continued tour of the Gulf with a visit to Qatar where he met Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.
2 min read
The Emir of Qatar presents the King of Saudi with a gift [Getty]
Saudi Arabia's King Salman arrived in Qatar on Monday as part of a rare regional tour ahead of the annual summit of Arab leaders of the Gulf states.
The trip comes at the time of a political transition in the US and as deadly conflicts rage in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.
Qatar state news agency said the visit will take excellent relations between the two countries "to new heights".
It follows a rift between Saudi Arabia and Qatar in 2014, when the two countries broke diplomatic ties and threatened the stability of the GCC.
It came about due to Qatar's alleged support for the Muslim Brotherhood and being home to al-Jazeera network which had been critical of Riyadh's ally Abdel Fattah al-Sisi following a military coup in Egypt.
All appears better following the closer military relations between Saudi Arabia and Qatar through Doha's participation in the war in Yemen.
Salman began his tour in the UAE - a key pillar of a Saudi-led Arab coalition battling Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015.
After Qatar, he will travel on to Kuwait and Bahrain, which is to host this year's Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit.
His trip excludes Oman, known for its warm ties with the kingdom's regional arch-foe Iran and the only GCC member which is not taking part in the Saudi-led coalition.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May - visiting the Gulf for the first time since she came to office in July - will attend the two-day GCC summit which begins 6 December.
The trip comes at the time of a political transition in the US and as deadly conflicts rage in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.
Qatar state news agency said the visit will take excellent relations between the two countries "to new heights".
It follows a rift between Saudi Arabia and Qatar in 2014, when the two countries broke diplomatic ties and threatened the stability of the GCC.
It came about due to Qatar's alleged support for the Muslim Brotherhood and being home to al-Jazeera network which had been critical of Riyadh's ally Abdel Fattah al-Sisi following a military coup in Egypt.
All appears better following the closer military relations between Saudi Arabia and Qatar through Doha's participation in the war in Yemen.
Salman began his tour in the UAE - a key pillar of a Saudi-led Arab coalition battling Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015.
After Qatar, he will travel on to Kuwait and Bahrain, which is to host this year's Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit.
His trip excludes Oman, known for its warm ties with the kingdom's regional arch-foe Iran and the only GCC member which is not taking part in the Saudi-led coalition.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May - visiting the Gulf for the first time since she came to office in July - will attend the two-day GCC summit which begins 6 December.
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