Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

U.S. Boast of Gulf Unity on Iran Undercut by Qatari Officials

U.S. Boast of Gulf Unity on Iran Undercut by Qatari Officials

Trump administration officials pushing the United Nations Security Council to extend an arms embargo on Iran have repeatedly boasted of a rare show of unity among Gulf allies backing the effort.

But officials from Qatar have been sending signals that the emirate, a neighbor and trading partner of Iran, is less enthusiastic than other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council about the letter backing the U.S. stance.

It’s a sign of the tensions surrounding the U.S. resolution to maintain the arms embargo against Iran, which is facing a vote that’s underway Friday. With U.S. allies in Europe among those resisting the resolution, it may not even win the nine votes that would force China and Russia to exercise their threatened vetoes.

U.S. officials have seized on the letter claiming support for the U.S. position by all six states in the GCC. Although the letter was signed only by Nayef Al-Hajraf, secretary general of the council. A cover letter transmitting it to the Security Council’s president also was signed by Amierah Alhefeiti, the UAE’s charge d’affaires. By then, a person familiar with the Qatari stance said, it was viewed as too late to demand changes.

Two Gulf officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the letter didn’t fully reflect Qatar’s view.

The discord first surfaced when Al Jazeera cited Mutlaq bin Majid Al-Qahtani, a senior Qatari foreign affairs official, as saying that collective decisions by the GCC typically follow meetings of the organization’s foreign ministers and that unilateral sanctions don’t lead to positive results.

“The continuation of policies of obstinacy and denial only lead to instability,” Al Qahtani said in the interview. That has led to tensions with other members of the GCC who back U.S. efforts to counter Iran’s influence in the region.

Asked whether Qatar was on board with the gulf alliance’s endorsement of the U.S. position, Brian Hook, the U.S. envoy for Iran, told reporters Thursday that “they have formally approved this letter, and that was the product of a lot of discussions.”

Sanctions Threat


The U.S. is facing criticism in the Security Council for its effort to extend the ban on arms dealings that’s due to expire in October. That’s partly because of the Trump administration’s threats that if the ban is allowed to lapse it will move to “snap back” international sanctions on Iran that were eased as part of the multinational nuclear deal that Trump quit in 2018.

Citing the “increasingly tense” discussions on Iran at the UN, Russian President Vladimir Putin is proposing an online conference of leaders from the five permanent members of the Security Council with Germany and Iran to discuss the future of the stalled 2015 pact on Iran’s nuclear program, according to a statement Friday on a Kremlin website.

The tiff over the Gulf council’s letter comes as the geopolitical map of the Mideast may be undergoing significant change. President Donald Trump announced Thursday that Israel and the United Arab Emirates, a member of the Gulf council, have reached an agreement to work toward fully normalized relations.

The letter from the Gulf Cooperation Council was a surprise because a number of Mideast nations led by Saudi Arabia have broken off relations with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism.

“This rift has entered its fourth year,” Hook said. “This is the only significant statement the GCC has issued since the rift started, and I think it’s important for people to recognize the significance of this statement.”

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×